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“On that imminent day, the second man in the Vatican, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, will be in Beirut to express the Pope’s condolences and his solidarity with Lebanon” following the bomb attack disaster in the port of Beirut last month, said the Pope.
This came during the Pope’s first weekly interview with the public in more than six months.
The public was unable to attend weekly interviews after February 26 due to the Corona pandemic.
Pope Francis urged followers of other sects to join his initiative in support of Lebanon.
He announced it after a young priest knelt next to him and handed him the Lebanese flag.
On August 4, Beirut trembled after a massive ammonium nitrate explosion in one of the port’s warehouses, killing more than 180 people and injuring at least 6,000 others.
The explosion exacerbated the economic and health crisis in Lebanon.
According to Johns Hopkins University, new coronavirus infections in Lebanon rose to a record 4,172 cases per week from August 23-29.
The Pope’s weekly interview was held today Wednesday in a square inside the Apostolic Palace, where the attendees donned masks and sat in separate seats, with spaces between them, to keep their distance.
“Good morning my dear brothers and sisters! After several months, we resumed our encounters face to face, not on screens, but face to face. This is nice,” Pope Francis said with a smile.
The 83-year-old Pope did not wear a muzzle. He stopped in front of the audience to say hello and exchange words, but kept his physical distance.
