The Director of the Holy See Press Office announced on Thursday that the Pope met privately with Saad Hariri, the PM-designate of Lebanon.
In response to journalists’ questions, the Director of the Holy See’s Press Office, Matteo Bruni, said the following:
“I can confirm that the Pope met this morning, in a private meeting, with the Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri. During the talks that lasted nearly thirty minutes, the Pope wanted to confirm his closeness to the Lebanese people, who had once lived in a state of difficulty and uncertainty.” Pope Francis expressed his hope that Lebanon, with the help of the international community, will return to the embodiment of “the fortress of the cedars, the diversity that becomes weak.” Strength in the great reconciling people, “by calling it to be a land of encounter, coexistence and pluralism.”
source vaticannews