Pope Leo XIV will end a three-day visit to Lebanon on Tuesday (2 December), concluding his first overseas trip as Catholic leader with an urgent appeal for peace in the Middle East and a warning that humanity’s future is threatened by the world’s bloody conflicts.
The first U.S. pope, Leo will pray at the site of the 2020 chemical blast at Beirut port and lead a large waterfront Mass expected to draw around 100,000 people before departing for Rome with his delegation at about 1:15 pm (1115 GMT).
Leo has repeatedly said he is on a “mission of peace” and urged Lebanon’s political leaders to persist with reconciliation efforts following last year's devastating conflict between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, as well as continued Israeli strikes.
The Pontiff largely unknown internationally before becoming pope in May, has been closely watched as he delivered his first overseas speeches and engaged with crowds outside predominantly Catholic Italy.
During a meeting on Monday with leaders from Lebanon’s diverse religious sects, he called on Christian, Sunni and Shi’ite Muslim, and Druze figures to work together to mend the country after years of political paralysis, conflict and economic collapse that have driven waves of migration.
He urged them to demonstrate that communities of different traditions “can live together and build a country united by respect and dialogue”.
The 70-year-old pontiff arrived in Lebanon after a visit to Türkiye, the first leg of his regional trip.
‘Pain after pain’
Many Lebanese see the visit as a moment of encouragement. Maroun al-Mallah, a 21-year-old landscape engineering student who volunteered at the Mass site, said the trip offered a rare sense of optimism.
“It was lovely to know there was a sign of hope coming back to Lebanon,” he told Reuters.
“Even in university, we just think what could come next. It’s just pain after pain after pain …especially after the third biggest explosion happened.”
The 2020 Beirut port explosion killed 200 people and caused billions in damage, but the investigation has been repeatedly stalled, with no one held accountable.
Leo is expected to pray at the blast site, lay a wreath at a memorial, and meet survivors and relatives of the victims. He will also visit a psychiatric hospital run by Franciscan nuns.
Lebanon home to the largest Christian population in the Middle East, has been further destabilised by the spillover from the Gaza conflict and the war between Israel and Hezbollah, culminating in a destructive Israeli offensive.
The country is also grappling with a crippling economic crisis, compounded by hosting around one million Syrian and Palestinian refugees.
French naval forces opened fire on a swarm of unidentified drones that flew over one of the country’s most sensitive military installations, the Îl...
The 2026 FIFA World Cup draw is underway at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., where world leaders, sports stars and FIFA officials have gathered...
Thousands of students across Germany walked out of classrooms on Friday to protest a newly approved military service law....
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi is scheduled to visit Azerbaijan next week for talks with his counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov on bilateral relation...
The 32nd Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Ministerial meeting in Vienna exposed a sharp divergence between governance prior...
Thousands of students across Germany walked out of classrooms on Friday to protest a newly approved military service law.
Middle Corridor’s rising strategic importance, and new dimensions of its development demand closer scrutiny
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi is scheduled to visit Azerbaijan next week for talks with his counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov on bilateral relations and cooperation.
The 32nd Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Ministerial meeting in Vienna exposed a sharp divergence between governance priorities in Brussels and Tbilisi.
For nearly three decades following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the international system was defined by a singular, overwhelming reality: American unipolarity.
Faced with mounting public outrage following one of the deadliest environmental disasters in the nation’s recent history, the Indonesian government has pledged to investigate and potentially shut down mining operations found to have contributed to the catastrophic flooding on Sumatra.
Israel was cleared on Thursday to participate in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, a decision made by the organisers, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which sparked a major controversy.
Britain’s King Charles III welcomed German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Wednesday, marking the beginning of his three-day state visit to the United Kingdom. The visit, the first by a German President to the UK in 27 years, comes as the two countries continue to strengthen ties post-Brexit.
Ukraine has rejected Russian claims that its forces have captured the city of Pokrovsk in eastern Donetsk, stating that Ukrainian troops continue to hold the northern districts along a railway line.
French naval forces opened fire on a swarm of unidentified drones that flew over one of the country’s most sensitive military installations, the Île Longue submarine base in western Brittany, officials confirmed on Friday.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup draw is underway at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., where world leaders, sports stars and FIFA officials have gathered for a ceremony shaping next summer’s expanded 48-team tournament.
Thousands of students across Germany walked out of classrooms on Friday to protest a newly approved military service law.
Norway plans to buy two additional submarines from Germany and a separate procurement of long-range artillery, the defence ministry said on Friday, at a much higher cost than before partly due to high demand for military equipment.
Moscow has expressed cautious optimism regarding diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine, following a marathon meeting between President Vladimir Putin and high-level representatives of the Trump administration.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment