Pope takes message of peace to Lebanon

Pope Leo XIV has arrived in Lebanon for a two-day trip where he is expected to bring a message of peace.

The American pontiff landed in Beirut from Turkey and is set to meet Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun, the Arab world's only Christian head of state, and deliver a speech to authorities and diplomats at the presidential palace later in the afternoon.

Lebanon, which has the largest share of Christians in the Middle East, has been rocked by the spillover of the Gaza conflict, as Israel and the Lebanese Shia Muslim militant group Hezbollah went to war, culminating in a devastating Israeli offensive.

Leaders in Lebanon, which hosts 1 million Syrian and Palestinian refugees and is also struggling to recover from years of economic crisis, are worried Israel will dramatically escalate its strikes in coming months.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said on Friday that he hoped Pope Leo's visit would help bring an end to Israeli attacks.

Lebanon's diverse communities have also welcomed the papal trip, with leading Druze cleric Sheikh Sami Abi al-Muna saying Lebanon "needs the glimmer of hope represented by this visit".

Pope Leo is being closely watched as he makes his first speeches overseas and interacts for the first time with people outside Italy.

Yesterday, he visited Istanbul's Blue Mosque, in his first visit as pope to a Muslim place of worship. He removed his shoes in a sign of respect but did not pray at the mosque as planned, which appeared to surprise Vatican officials.

The pope attended an Orthodox Christian liturgy this morning led by Istanbul-based Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, spiritual leader of the world's 260 million Orthodox Christians.

In remarks during the service, Bartholomew said the world "expects a unified message of hope from Christians unequivocally condemning war and violence".

"We cannot be complicit in the bloodshed taking place in Ukraine and other parts of the world," said the patriarch.

The pontiff has a crowded itinerary in Lebanon, visiting five cities and towns from today until Tuesday, when he returns to Rome. He will not travel to the south, the target of Israeli strikes.

His schedule includes a prayer at the site of a 2020 chemical explosion at the Beirut port that killed 200 people and caused billions of dollars' worth of damage.

He will also lead an outdoor mass on the Beirut waterfront and visit a psychiatric hospital, one of the few mental health facilities in Lebanon, where carers and residents are eagerly anticipating his arrival.