Pope Leo XIV has arrived in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, as part of his first foreign trip aiming to bring a message of peace to a region marked by war and tensions.

Pope Leo arrived in Turkey on his first trip outside Italy as leader of the Catholic Church on Thursday and was expected to make appeals for peace in the Middle East and urge unity among long-divided Christian churches.

Addressing some 400 government officials at his first public engagement in Beirut, the pope said Lebanon needs "authorities and institutions that recognize the common good as superior to the particular.

Pope Leo XIV visits holy sites in Lebanon on Monday, drawing Christians and Muslims. He aims to recognize the country's religious pluralism and encourage Christians not to abandon the region. Over

Pope Leo arrived in Turkey for the initial stop on his first foreign trip as pontiff. The pope is meeting with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and then traveling to Istanbul for three days of interfaith meetings in the predominantly Muslim country.

Pope Leo XIV has arrived in Turkey at the start of the first foreign trip of his papacy, where he will mark an historic Christian anniversary, before heading to Lebanon days after Israeli airstrikes on its capital, Beirut.

During the Mass, Leo urged Turkey’s small Catholic community to forge “bonds of unity” with other Christians and people of other faiths as an invitation to become peacemakers.

We are in need of someone like the pope to come and give us hope as Christians” at a time of "fear of an unknown future,” said 24-year-old Dima Awwad, one of the delegation