Giorgio Lingua

Giorgio Lingua is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who has worked in the diplomatic service of the Holy See since 1992. He was previously nuncio in Iraq, Jordan, Cuba and Croatia.

Biography

He was born on 23 March 1960 in Piovani, a small town belonging to the municipality of Fossano, in the province of Cuneo, Italy, in 1960. He was ordained on 10 November 1984. He earned a doctorate in canon law. To prepare for a diplomat’s career, he completed the course of study at the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy in 1988.

He entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See on 1 July 1992. He worked in the papal representations in the Ivory Coast and the United States, and in the Section for Relations with States of the Secretariat of State as well as in the apostolic nunciatures in Italy and Serbia.
On 4 September 2010, Pope Benedict XVI named him the Apostolic Nuncio to Iraq and Jordan as well as Titular Archbishop of Tuscania. He received his episcopal consecration from Tarcisio Bertone on 9 October 2010.
Asked about the 2014 US airstrikes in response to the advance of ISIS, Lingua said: "This is something that had to be done, otherwise could not be stopped. But, we should wonder why we have arrived at this point: was it not a lack of intelligence? Were we not able to understand what was going on? And then: who gave these such sophisticated weapons?"
On 17 March 2015, Pope Francis named him Apostolic Nuncio to Cuba.
On 22 July 2019, Francis named him Apostolic Nuncio to Croatia.
On January 22, 2026, Pope Leo XIV named him as nuncio to Israel and Apostolic Delegate to Jerusalem and Palestine.