BEIRUT — Tens of thousands of people gathered in the Lebanese capital to witness Pope Leo XIV's message of unity to a shattered city and a fractured state Tuesday.
Before Mass, the pontiff stopped by the site of a powerful chemical explosion in August 2020 that killed 218 people and injured 7,000 as it tore through entire neighborhoods. At least 300,000 people were displaced by the blast.
After holding a moment of silent prayer in front of a memorial to the victims, he made his way to Beirut’s historic waterfront in his popemobile, waving to the enthusiastic crowds, some of whom had waited hours to catch a glimpse of him. Many waved Lebanese flags and flowers as hymns rang out.
In front of a crowd of around 150,000 people, he called on Lebanon to “cast off the armor of our ethnic and political divisions” and address years of conflict, political paralysis and economic misery.
“The Middle East needs new approaches in order to reject the mindset of revenge and violence, to overcome political, social and religious divisions, and to open new chapters in the name of reconciliation and peace,” he said in his homily, speaking in French from the stage next to the shimmering Mediterranean.
French is widely spoken in Lebanon alongside Arabic, a testament to the country’s religious and ethnic diversity, as well as its colonial past. The country only gained independence from France in 1943.
A few relatives of those who were killed during the devastating 2020 port blast waiting for Leo with photos of loved ones. Among them was Najwa Hayek, whose daughter, Lara Hayek, is still in a coma five years after the disaster.
Lara Hayek, who was 42 at the time, turns 48 later this month.
“It’s so hard, I cannot believe she has gone like this,” her mother told NBC News on Monday.
Years of obstruction by top officials have stalled an investigation into the incident and quashed hopes for justice.
Hayek said she was not under the impression that Leo's trip to Lebanon would help to move forward the investigation and deliver some accountability, but she still believed it would bring some hope.
“I appreciate his visit so much. It’s a holy visit,” she said.
Tuesday's event ended the pontiff’s first international trip, which took him to Turkey and then Lebanon, both Muslim-majority countries that are home to Christian populations.
Throughout his trip, Leo's main message was a call for unity and interfaith dialogue in the region wracked by conflict and war.
Just a week before he landed in Beirut, an Israeli airstrike on the city killed Haytham Ali Tabatabai, a senior Hezbollah commander, along with four other people. Another 28 were injured.
Lebanon has also been rocked by the spillover of the war in Gaza. Until a fragile ceasefire was brokered around a year ago, Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shia Muslim militant group, was also battling Israeli forces across the country's southern border.
Beirut was also hit by numerous strikes, which Israel said were targeting Hezbollah leaders.
Addressing reporters at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport before he left, Leo called for attacks and hostilities to cease.
“Let no one think that armed conflict brings any benefit,” he said. “Weapons kill, but negotiation, mediation and dialogue build. Let us all choose peace.”
