Dhaka, June 7 -- Pope Leo on Saturday urged global leaders to stop dividing their electorates with "sterile simplifications," calling on them to listen to the world's cries for peace as he met migrants and some 600,000 young people at the start of a week-long tour of Spain.

Leo, who has angered US President Donald Trump by criticising his anti-immigration policies and the Iran war, visited a Church-run shelter for the homeless in Madrid and will meet migrants in the Canary Islands during the five-stop visit.

He said before touching down in Spain that he hoped the tour would set an example to the world about respecting "every human being."

"Today, the temptation to gain popularity by fanning the flames of polarisation seems to have grow...