Pope Leo wraps up Middle East visit at Beirut port blast site : NPR

BEIRUT – Pope Leo XIV ended his first trip abroad with prayers in Beirut's devastated port and a Mass attended by some 150,000 faithful in a country desperate for signs of hope amid fears of renewed war.

The pope offered prayers at the site of the explosion that occurred in central Beirut five years ago after a warehouse full of ammonium nitrate exploded, a devastating event attributed to government negligence and dysfunction. No senior official was convicted of the attack, which caused billions of dollars in damage to an already collapsing economy.

The pope lit a candle in front of the memorial, which is engraved with the names of more than 200 people killed in the blast, and met with relatives, some of whom carried framed photographs of their dead loved ones.

The charred shell of a granary, destroyed by an explosion, towered above this place.

The pope referred to the explosion in his homily at Mass, calling for Lebanon to become a place of justice. He said it was natural to feel paralyzed by “powerlessness in the face of evil and oppressed by so many difficult situations.”

He called on the country to become a place “where peace and justice reign.”

“Lebanon – stand up! Be the home of justice and brotherhood!” he said, calling for it to be a “prophetic sign” of peace in the region.

Worshipers at the waterfront mass included United Nations peacekeepers in uniform and blue berets. Many of the roughly 50 countries that make up the mission monitoring the border between Lebanon and Israel come from predominantly Catholic countries.

In his farewell speech at Beirut airport, the pope identified southern Lebanon, where Israeli attacks continue, as places he was unable to visit on this trip because of the “conflict and uncertainty” there.

Israel has severely damaged several Christian villages in attacks during its war with Hezbollah, even after a ceasefire was signed between Lebanon and Israel last year. Hezbollah has not attacked Israel since then, but the Israeli military says, without providing evidence, that the group is rebuilding its military capabilities.

On the papal plane returning to Rome on Tuesday, Pope Leo told reporters that he was working behind the scenes and had “in a very small way started some conversations” with some political leaders to end Israel's ongoing airstrikes in Lebanon. He declined to go into detail. but said: “I intend to continue to do this personally or through the Holy See, because the fact is that we have diplomatic relations with most of the countries in the region, and we certainly hope that we will continue to raise that call for peace that I spoke about at the end of the Mass today.”

The areas of southern Lebanon are part of the Galilee, extending into modern-day northern Israel, where Jesus preached and performed miracles.

Pope Leo, the first American leader of the world's Catholics, met with young people Monday evening. Lebanese Christians and young people make up a disproportionately large percentage of the population leaving the country, many convinced they have no future here.

“Dear young people, you may regret inheriting a world torn by war and marred by social justice, but there is hope, and there is hope within you,” he told them.

Many Lebanese, who welcomed the pope's arrival, feared his departure would be a prelude to increased Israeli attacks.

“I came here because I wanted to be among people who hope for peace and I hoped it would be contagious,” says Rabab Htait, a former teacher. “What we are doing here is hoping for a miracle, because the situation now requires nothing less than a miracle.”

NPR's Ruth Sherlock contributed to this report.