Pope Leo XIV arrived in Lebanon on Sunday with a message of peace for a nation still reeling from conflict and economic collapse.
The pontiff, elected in May as the first American pope, landed in Beirut shortly before 3:45 pm and was received with full state honours by President Joseph Aoun, the region’s only Christian head of state.
Lebanon, long seen as a model of coexistence, has been battered by crises—from the 2019 economic meltdown to the 2020 Beirut port explosion and the recent Israel–Hezbollah war that ended with a ceasefire last November.
“I came to say that the Lebanese are one people,” said 19-year-old Zahra Nahleh, among the crowds welcoming the pope. “He is not just for Christians but for Muslims too.”
During his four-day visit, Pope Leo will hold meetings with President Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, and will deliver an address to officials and diplomats later on Sunday.
His arrival follows a three-day stop in Turkey, where he met President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, marked the 1,700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea, and presided over a multilingual mass in Istanbul.
The visit marks the first papal trip to Lebanon since 2012 and comes at a critical moment for a country struggling to restore stability and unity.
