Pope Francis made a passionate appeal for peace in Lebanon and the Middle East during his Angelus prayer at the Vatican on Sunday.
Regional tensions have risen in the Middle East over Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri's surprise resignation.
Hariri, a long-time Saudi ally, resigned on Nov. 4 in an announcement made from Riyadh. Hariri cited fear of assassination and accused Iran and Hezbollah of spreading strife in the Arab world.
His resignation threw Lebanon into political crisis and put it center-stage in the Middle East's overarching rivalry between Sunni Saudi Arabia and its allies and a bloc led by Shi'ite Iran.
Shortly after marking the first annual World Day of the Poor, Francis also called on the international community to stop wars and conflicts which he said were causing “painful conditions of poverty.”