The Vatican launched an investigation on Monday into allegations that a Swiss Guard made antisemitic gestures toward two Jewish women during a papal audience last month.
The October 29 incident occurred at St. Peter’s Square during an event marking the anniversary of Vatican reforms on Catholic-Jewish relations.
Israeli writer Michal Govrin told Austrian news agency Kathpress that a guard hissed “the Jews” at her and a colleague before making a spitting gesture. The women were part of an international Jewish delegation attending Pope Leo XIV’s audience.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni confirmed receiving a report about “an incident at one of the entrances to the Vatican City State, in which elements interpreted as having antisemitic connotations were detected,” per the Associated Press. He suggested the episode stemmed from a disagreement over photography at a guard post.
The timing proved particularly awkward. During the same audience, Pope Leo XIV declared, “The Church does not tolerate antisemitism and fights it,” drawing sustained applause from attendees, AP reported.
The Swiss Guard, founded in 1506, serves as the world’s oldest military corps protecting the Pope. Bruni emphasized the guard’s commitment to “ensuring that its mission is always carried out with respect for the dignity of each person and the fundamental principles of equality and non-discrimination.”