There are many interpretations of the word “peace” in the Lebanese context. The fact that the visiting Pope Leo this week repeated it more than 20 times in one speech does not necessarily tilt the paradigm toward a more certain future for Lebanon or the wider Middle East. It is hard to find a Lebanese that does not want peace, but usually that is a peace tailored by their clan, tribe or political party’s narrative.
Yes, the majority of Lebanese are at last tired of perpetual conflict, but peace is unlikely to reign in the absence of a just and fair settlement between Israel and the Lebanese, the Palestinians, the Iranians and the Syrians. Such a development might finally bring about an enduringly stable Lebanon and maybe a more tolerant Middle East.
Pope Leo, making a two-day visit to Lebanon after four days in Turkiye, prayed for peace both in the multiconfessional country and in the region. A joyful Lebanese population welcomed the pontiff in their well-known and warm style, with the young and old, Muslim and Christian, political and apolitical lining the streets to wave at the pontiff. In some places, he was cheered like a pop star, in others he was seen as a savior, but the reality is that Pope Leo’s sincere message of peace can only go so far. His message will not persuade the big powers, with their conflicting agendas, to vie for peace in Lebanon, the region or anywhere else on Earth.
The pope’s visit and prayers no doubt offered just a small respite for stricken Lebanon, where an internal stalemate over the disarming of Hezbollah continues to distract the president and government from pursuing a reform program that could set the country on a peaceful and stable path. A year ago, many believed that such an opportunity would never be possible, but the fall of the Assad regime in Syria and the battering of Hezbollah by Israel, along with the weakening of the Iranian regime by Israeli and US strikes, changed things.
As he traveled around Lebanon, Pope Leo stayed faithful to his message of saving humanity, not just Christians. “For the world, we ask for peace. We especially implore it for Lebanon and for the entire Levant,” he said while visiting an ancient monastery. Addressing the country’s youth during another stop, he called on them to help build a better world than the one they inherited. But even with the best enthusiasm and goodwill they could muster, their world sadly forms part of a seemingly cursed Middle East. This is a place where nations have rarely ever been at peace with themselves or their neighbors, amid competing identities, sectarianism and ideological and economic divides.
One hopes that the message of hope and peace delivered by a sincere pope will last longer than his journey back to the Vatican. I am not being a cynic here, since the region, from Lebanon to Palestine and Syria to Sudan, remains a powder keg.
What is true of our world today are the limitations of moral, ethical and humanitarian considerations when it comes to bidding for peace. This brings to mind the alleged words of Joseph Stalin after he was asked to consider having the pope at a Second World War peace conference: “How many divisions does the pope have?”
And the same applies today. A close look at Lebanon, where the pope urged its government and people to seek tolerance, inclusion and peace, reveals a country in the grip of domestic discord like never before. And this is in addition to the ongoing low-intensity Israeli attacks against Hezbollah operatives and capabilities in the south and east of the country, as well as Beirut’s suburbs.
The inhabitants of thousands of border villages remain displaced as a result of last year’s war with Israel. Despite the ceasefire deal signed a year ago by Hezbollah and Israel — with no involvement of the Lebanese government — Israel continues to launch almost-daily bombing raids into Lebanon. The UN peacekeeping mission in the country has recorded more than 10,000 violations and counting.
Hopes of peace, from Lebanon to Syria, Gaza and the West Bank, remain at the mercy of Israel’s overarching and untamed reach, as Tel Aviv strikes whatever it considers a threat to its national security.
In Gaza, the ceasefire is more like a “reduce fire,” as the Israeli attacks continue on a near-daily basis. The casualties and destruction keep coming, with the world getting accustomed to a low-intensity conflict and limited humanitarian aid reaching the needy.
The West Bank is not faring any better, as Israel’s crackdown since Oct. 7, 2023, has escalated into a siege of the Palestinian population by the army and military-backed settlers. Human Rights Watch last month stated that Israel’s operations in the West Bank amounted to “war crimes, crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.”
Syria, despite the fall of the Assad regime and the removal of the years-old Iranian influence, is also not being spared the long Israeli arm. The government in Tel Aviv is reserving the right to reach into Syrian territory at will, eroding trust in the new government, which is supported by international and regional powers.
So, the pope’s message of peace is likely to fall on deaf ears from Lebanon to Gaza, Syria and elsewhere, since the word is subject to interpretation and context. The man on the street in Lebanon, like elsewhere, is committed to peace and desires it, but the question is who will enforce it in a world that is retreating on its commitment to uphold human rights and is increasingly governed by the powerful and their unilateral violence, rather than a rules-based international system?
BY: Writer Mohamed Chebaro is a British-Lebanese journalist with more than 25 years’ experience covering war, terrorism, defense, current affairs and diplomacy.
Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not necessarily reflect The Times Union‘ point of view
