Lebanon

The new pontiff has been far more reserved than his outspoken predecessor. But many of their underlying progressive messages remain the same.

“The pope’s visit is a sign of hope,” the Rev. Miled Abboud told NBC News. “There are a lot of bleak things, of things that make us despair, but we have Christ, who gives us strength to carry on.”

The event ends the pontiff’s first international trip that took him to Muslim-majority countries with different Christian denominations.

Ahead of his visit, Leo shared a Thanksgiving message with NBC News encouraging all people "to recognize that we have all received so many gifts."

The strike comes days before Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to visit Lebanon and as Israeli airstrikes have intensified recently.

The Israeli military said it struck militants who it said were operating in a training compound in a Palestinian refugee camp near Sidon.

The bombardment came hours after Hezbollah urged the Lebanese government not to enter negotiations with Israel.

Hannibal Gadhafi is accused of withholding information about the fate of a Lebanese Shiite cleric who disappeared in 1978, although he was less than 3 years old at the time.

Near-daily Israeli attacks have become the new normal in Lebanon, nearly a year after a U.S.-brokered truce halted the lastest conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

Israel accuses Hezbollah of trying to rebuild its capabilities after the group suffered heavy losses during the war.