(MENAFN) Pope Leo XIV arrived in Beirut on Sunday, marking the second stop of his first international journey since becoming pontiff in May, after traveling from Türkiye.

He was greeted at Rafik Hariri International Airport by Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, and Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi. Crowds lined the route from the airport to the presidential palace in Baabda, east of Beirut, to welcome the pope.

Lebanese Information Minister Paul Morcos wrote on social media platform X that Lebanon “warmly welcomes” the pontiff at a critical time for the nation, noting that over 1,000 journalists are covering the visit. He added that the pope’s arrival brings “great hope to a people struggling with crises.”

The pope departed Türkiye early Sunday and was seen off in Istanbul by senior Turkish officials.

His three-day Lebanon visit includes meetings with the president, parliament speaker, and prime minister, followed by sessions with civil society representatives and diplomats, before moving to the apostolic nunciature in Harissa, north of Beirut.

On Monday, Pope Leo XIV will visit Annaya, home to the Mar Charbel monastery, to pray at the Shrine of Saint Charbel. He will also meet bishops, priests, and pastoral workers at the Shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon in Harissa, and hold a private meeting with Catholic patriarchs at the nunciature. The day will conclude with an interfaith and ecumenical gathering at Martyrs’ Square in central Beirut and a meeting with youth at the Maronite patriarchal complex in Bkerke.

On Tuesday, the pope is scheduled to visit medical staff and patients at the Sisters of the Cross Hospital in Jal el-Dib and hold a silent prayer at the site of the Beirut port blast. The visit will conclude with a Mass on Beirut’s waterfront and an official farewell ceremony at the airport.

MENAFN01122025000045017640ID1110417290