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Capping disconnected symbolic three-day visit, the Pontiff urged Lebanese unity and the pursuit of bid and justice.
Published On 2 Dec 2025
Pope Leo XIV has offered prayers astatine the tract of the 2020 Beirut larboard blast, 1 of the last stops successful his three-day sojourn to Lebanon.
The Catholic person prayed silently and lit a lamp connected Tuesday greeting astatine a monument to the much than 220 radical that were killed and 6,500 injured in the explosion. The United States-born pontiff has urged peaceful coexistence crossed the Middle East during his inaugural travel abroad.
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With mounds of rubble and the remains of the devastated installation wrong sight, the Pontiff shook hands, blessed and spoke with each 1 of the survivors and relatives of victims who were present.
“We are precise grateful for this sojourn from the Pope,” said Cecile Roukoz, a lawyer whose member died successful the explosion. “We cognize that helium raises his voice” for justness “and we request justness for our brothers and each the victims of this explosion”.
Reporting from Beirut’s waterfront, wherever Leo aboriginal held Mass, Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr said galore Lebanese radical spot his outreach astatine the blast tract arsenic a almighty gesture.
“For the Pope to talk to the household members 1 by 1 … it truly meant a lot,” she said.
Victims and families of those killed are inactive seeking justness 5 years aft the blast, which caused billions of dollars successful harm arsenic it tore done neighbourhoods.
No authoritative has been convicted successful a judicial probe that has been repeatedly obstructed, angering Lebanese for whom the blast was conscionable the latest grounds of impunity aft decades of corruption and fiscal crimes.
When Leo arrived successful Lebanon connected Sunday, helium had urged the country’s governmental leaders to prosecute the information arsenic a means of bid and reconciliation.
‘Cast disconnected taste and governmental divisions’
Tens of thousands aboriginal congregated astatine Beirut’s waterfront for the Pope’s Mass, capping disconnected his three-day sojourn to the country.
“We indispensable unite our efforts truthful that this onshore tin instrumentality to its glory,” helium declared, urging Lebanon’s radical to “cast disconnected the armour of our taste and governmental divisions”.
He said helium envisioned “a Lebanon wherever bid and justness reign, wherever each recognise each different arsenic brothers and sisters”.
Pope Leo XIV arrives to pb a wide astatine Beirut’s waterfront connected December 2 [Giuseppe Cacace/AFP]The Vatican’s property service, citing the Lebanese authorities, said immoderate 150,000 radical had attended the outdoor ceremony.
That means that the turnout was markedly smaller than the astir 300,000 who attended Pope Benedict XVI’s 2012 waterfront Mass during the past papal sojourn to Lebanon.
The discrepancy speaks to the wide exodus of Lebanese, including Christians, successful caller years, spurred by mounting economical and governmental turmoil, including heavy sectarian strife, said Khodr.
“Since Pope Benedict XVI was present … it has been situation aft situation for the country: Economic collapse, radical losing their savings and past the larboard explosion,” said Khodr.
“And present the continuing struggle betwixt Hezbollah and Israel. Really, the database goes on. When you talk to radical here, they accidental beingness is hard and we are struggling, but we admit the Pope’s presence.”
Leo’s sojourn to Lebanon was the 2nd limb of an overseas travel that started successful Turkiye, successful which helium pleaded for bid successful the Middle East and warned that humanity’s aboriginal is astatine hazard from the world’s bloody conflicts.
English (US) ·