On Beirut Blast 1st Anniversary, Pope Francis Promises Lebanon Visit

Pope Francis, on first anniversary of fatal blast in Beirut, said he had a "great" desire to visit Lebanon.

The 84-year-old pope wished success for French President Emmanuel Macron's efforts to raise more than $350 million in aid for Lebanon at a donors' conference and send another warning to its squabbling political class.

Francis was speaking in the Vatican's audience hall. He said many in Lebanon, mired in a financial depression and faces its worst social crisis in 30 years, had lost "even the illusion of living."

Thus, donors should help Lebanon "on a path of resurrection", he stressed, calling for "concrete gestures, not just words" because many who had lost their homes and jobs were tired and deluded.

"Dear Lebanese, my desire to come to visit you is great. And I will not tire of praying for you so that Lebanon returns to being a message of brotherhood, a message of peace for all of the Middle East," he said.

The huge 4th August 2020 chemical explosion in Beirut killed 200 people and caused billions of dollars worth of damage.