On Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron visited the Vatican, a meeting dominated by the conflict in the Middle East, particularly in Lebanon. President Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron arrived at the Apostolic Palace around 10 a.m. Macron held a one-on-one meeting with Pope Francis, an American who is fluent in French and passionate about culture, for about an hour—a duration much longer than a typical papal audience. The content of the talks was not immediately announced, but the Élysée Palace stated that Macron, in his fourth meeting with a Pope during two terms, intended to prioritize 'resolving the crisis in the Middle East.' Lebanon occupied a special place in the discussions, especially after Israeli strikes hit the country on Wednesday, killing over 300 people according to Lebanese authorities, despite a ceasefire holding on other fronts of the Middle East war that broke out after the U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran on February 28.
