A video has been widely shared showing a man urinating on an altar in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.
The video shows a man with his trousers around his ankles urinating on the basilica’s Altar of Confession on Friday, before being taken away by two men in suits.
The person involved had “a serious mental disability,” Italian media quoted a Vatican spokesman as saying. The man was detained by Vatican police before being handed over to the Italian authorities.
Newsweek has contacted the Vatican’s press office, via email, for comment.
Why It Matters
The Altar of Confession in St. Peter’s is believed to be built above the tomb of the first Pope, and is considered one of the holiest sites in Catholicism.
Its desecration has sparked international outcry and raised concerns about security at major religious sites.
What To Know
The incident happened at 9:30 a.m. local time on Friday, while hundreds of faithful and tourists were inside the church, Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported.
The man involved was quickly escorted out of the building by “plainclothes police officers present in the basilica,” reported the paper.
The Italian newspaper Il Tempo said Pope Leo XIV was “shocked” to learn the news, but the Vatican has not issued an official statement to this effect.
A video of the incident has been widely shared on social media—a clip posted on X by RadioGenoa had garnered more than 2.4 million views at the time of writing.
What People Are Saying
Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni told the Italian news agency ANSA: “This is an episode of a person with a serious mental disability who has been detained by the Vatican Police and then placed at the disposal of the Italian authorities.”
Radio Genoa captioned its video: “Parasite breaks into St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican and urinates on the altar.”
What Happens Next
An investigation into the incident is ongoing. The Vatican has responded to previous incidents by increasing security in the basilica.
