Pope Leo XIV. [Reuters]
Pope Leo XIV. [Reuters]

Pope Leo XIV met Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and pledged Vatican support for the implementation of a peace deal between Lebanon and Israel.

According to the Vatican, Leo XIV and Aoun held talks Thursday centered on a trilateral framework agreement signed by the United States, Israel and Lebanon.

The framework agreement, concluded in June, calls for Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah to disarm and for Israeli forces to withdraw from southern Lebanon.

However, implementation has run into serious difficulties. Hezbollah has refused to disarm, arguing that the Lebanese government is making unilateral concessions without securing a guarantee of Israeli withdrawal.

Israel, meanwhile, has continued strikes on southern Lebanon, designating the area as a Hezbollah stronghold.

The Vatican said the pope expressed satisfaction that the framework agreement had been reached but voiced deep concern over the difficulties arising in its actual implementation.

Leo XIV also used Thursday's message for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation to lay out a critical stance on war.

"War is not only a political failure but also a moral and spiritual one," he said, adding that "the true instruments for building peace are not weapons of destruction." He said war, "rooted in distorted desires and the abuse of power, stands as a counter-witness to the Gospel of peace."


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