Lebanese hopeful Pope Leo will bring peace as he visits the country

"Blessed are the peacemakers," say the billboards around Beirut, bearing pictures of Pope Leo and welcoming him to the country.

Large crowds in Beirut welcomed the pope with cheers and waves following his arrival in Lebanon on Sunday, local time.

The pontiff's visit to the Middle East, which began in Türkiye, marks his first foreign trip since being elected in May, and the significance has not been lost on locals.

"It's a big message from the pope to come to Lebanon in these days," said Boutros Wassaf, a sub-deacon in the Maronite Diocese of Antelias in Beirut, who is bringing his scout troop to meet the pope.

After a brutal war with Israel last year and ongoing Israeli bombardment and occupation despite a "ceasefire", the Lebanese hope the pope really can bring peace with him.

"Lebanon is in a big problem now on all the things — there's a war, there are problems in the economic things — and the message of the pope now is a very big message," Mr Wassaf said.

"In the middle of the darkness of Lebanon, it will be a big light.

Pope Leo's choice of Lebanon and Türkiye for his first overseas trip is being perceived across the region as a message of solidarity for its people.

Despite heavy rain, hundreds of supporters lined the papal convoy's route from the airport to the presidential palace, where the pope addressed politicians and religious leaders from Lebanon's many sects.

Busloads of Syrian Christians, nervous after the fall of the Assad dictatorship to Islamist rebels one year ago, have come across the border to see the pope, hoping for some visibility for their situation.

The Lebanese hope the pope's visit will dissuade Israel from launching further air strikes against the militant group Hezbollah, at least while the world is watching.

Hezbollah itself has even hailed the visit, using it to reaffirm its refusal to surrender its arms to the Lebanese government, in the face of pressure from the United States and Israel.

"We in Hezbollah take this opportunity of your blessed visit to Lebanon to reaffirm our commitment to peaceful coexistence, consensual democracy, the preservation of internal security and stability, and to safeguarding our national sovereignty by standing with our army and people against any aggression or occupation of our land and country," the group said in a statement.

"As our faith affirms that the followers of Jesus Christ, son of Mary, are messengers of love, protection of rights, and respect for humanity, we rely on your Holiness's stances in rejecting the injustice and aggression inflicted on our homeland, Lebanon, by the Zionist invaders (Israel) and their supporters."

People waved the group's flags alongside Lebanon's and the Vatican's as they waited for his arrival along the streets.

Prayers around Lebanon

The Vatican says the trip is focused on ecumenical matters but has acknowledged the broader issues affecting the region.

"Pope Leo XIV's pilgrimage to Türkiye and Lebanon aims to offer a voice of peace, unity, and hope at the heart of the Middle East," the Vatican press office said.

During his trip he will visit the site of the Beirut Port explosion and give a holy mass on the city's waterfront, not far from the destroyed grain silos that have become a monument to the disaster, which killed 218 people in August, 2020.

He will also visit the monastery of Lebanese Maronite Saint Charbel, in the mountains above Beirut, and pray with crowds in the city's iconic Martyrs Square.

The Vatican said the pope was especially looking forward to meeting young Lebanese in a special session in Beirut.

One of the youth selected for the meeting, cub scout leader Christy Eid, 18, said she was excited to see him.

"I love that the pope is showing compassion towards the Lebanese people and we really need his support to continue spreading peace. His visit is really important to us," she said.

"It definitely means more to me, especially right now. Because I think he's not just coming to do a regular visit. He's bringing peace with him, which is really what we're waiting for right now."

Worshippers at the St Michael Maronite Church in the mountains north of Beirut were preparing to see the pope, both on his routes around the city and at the Holy Mass.

Priest Georges Abu Mitri said the pope's visit to Lebanon was intended to reassure Christians around the region.

"Because we Lebanese are the last Christian presence in the Middle East," he said.

"Not in Syria, not in Iraq, not even in Türkiye where the pope is coming from now.

"The Christian presence is not as strong as it is in Lebanon now."

A parish member, Hassan Ayash, told the ABC the pope's visit will "help solve the problems of the country".

"Lebanon needs it," he said. "There are many problems. The fact the pope is coming helps to find solutions for this country, to help it prosper and to be peaceful and good and loving."

Australian-Lebanese retiree Joe Khoury, who used to live in Sydney, said he would be attending mass at the waterfront as well as lining the route of the pope's travels to see him.

"It's going to be a spiritual festival and a popular festival," he said.

"This is something we do really need in this country, especially at this time.

"I attended when John Paul II came and it gave us, as Christians, a push.

"At this time when everybody is talking about war and bad things are going to happen to this country, I think it's going to change the whole situation."