Pope Leo XIV said the Middle East needed “new approaches” and that the “horror of war” had been a path too well trodden, in a Mass in Beirut on the final day of his visit.
Much of Lebanon’s capital was shut down on Tuesday as Pope Leo led a morning Mass for tens of thousands of worshippers – including President Joseph Aoun – on the Beirut waterfront. He also prayed at the site of the 2020 port blast that rocked Lebanon's capital, before returning to the Vatican.
Crowds began packing into the waterfront area in the early morning, standing shoulder-to-shoulder under heavy security, with helicopters circling overhead. Streets leading to the site were emptied long before the service began.
The Pope again prayed for peace “in this beloved land, marked by wars and instability”, and urged worshippers to “be artisans of peace, heralds of peace, witnesses of peace”.
About 120,000 people attended the Mass on Beirut's waterfront, a site better known for glitzy events and hosting famous DJs.
“The Middle East needs new approaches in order to reject the mindset of revenge and violence, to overcome political, social and religious divisions, to open new chapters in the name of reconciliation and peace,” the Pope said in a multilingual ceremony.
He warned that “the path of mutual hostility and the horror of war has been travelled been too long, with the deplorable results that are before everyone's eyes. We need to change course, we need to educate our hearts for peace.”
Later, as he prepared to depart from Beirut airport he declared: "While weapons are lethal, negotiation, mediation and dialogue are constructive. Let us all choose peace as a way, not just as a goal!"
Worshippers had begun queuing for the eagerly anticipated Mass since the early hours. Afterwards, the Pope left for the airport to finish his first trip abroad since becoming head of the Catholic Church in May.
Yasmeena Farjallah, who was in attendance, said she felt "blessed and lucky to be here". She added: "I think it shows that our nation, no matter what it goes through, it's still a blessed nation, a blessed country.
"And no matter how much violence there is in this country, it still represents peace, Christianity and love, and I really hope that his coming will bless our country for good."
The pontiff greeted worshippers from his popemobile as he made his way to the pulpit. Mr Aoun, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and senior political figures representing Lebanon’s many sects sat in the front rows.
Beirut resident Elven Daher, who is originally from Marjayoun in south Lebanon, had been waiting since 8am. He said: “It’s an amazing feeling. I hope his visit brings to Lebanon a lot of joy, peace and stability. Maybe a few years later we can tell our kids about this.”
The Mass is the highlight and final item on the agenda of Pope Leo's three-day visit. Before arriving, he led a silent prayer at Beirut Port, where more than 220 people were killed and hundreds injured in August 2020, in one of the world's largest non-nuclear explosions. Pope Leo also met families of victims of the deadly blast.
No one has been held responsible five years on from the disaster and the inquiry has repeatedly been impeded.
William Noun, whose brother Joe was among the firefighters killed on that day, said: “The Pope came to the families, spoke to a bunch of us and listened.
"He knows about the judicial struggles here in Lebanon, of course he’s not going to talk about the [explosion] in detail, but just the fact that he came down and stood at the port tells those responsible if they are really believers then they will do what needs to be done," added Mr Noun, holding his young child Joe.
"I was deeply moved by my brief visit to the Port of Beirut," the Pope said from the airport."I carry with me the pain, and the thirst for truth and justice, of so many families, of an entire country," he added.
The Pope's visit brought a message of hope to a nation that is still subjected to frequent Israeli attacks despite a ceasefire that came into effect last year.
Tuesday is the last day of a historic trip that took in Turkey before Lebanon. The late Pope Francis had planned to visit both nations but his deteriorating health prevented him from doing so. Pope Leo's coincided with the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, which settled key aspects of Christian doctrine in what is now Iznik in Turkey.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Friday Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin (11.30pm)
Saturday Freiburg v Borussia Monchengladbach, Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Dortmund, Cologne v Wolfsburg, Arminia Bielefeld v Mainz (6.30pm) Bayern Munich v RB Leipzig (9.30pm)
Sunday Werder Bremen v Stuttgart (6.30pm), Schalke v Bayer Leverkusen (9pm)
Monday Hoffenheim v Augsburg (11.30pm)
RESULTS
5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: Samau Xmnsor, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Ottoman, Szczepan Mazur, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner: Sharkh, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 85,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner: Yaraa, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri
7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Maaly Al Reef, Bernardo Pinheiro, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Jinjal, Fabrice Veron, Ahmed Al Shemaili
8pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Al Sail, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
How England have scored their set-piece goals in Russia
Three Penalties
v Panama, Group Stage (Harry Kane)
v Panama, Group Stage (Kane)
v Colombia, Last 16 (Kane)
Four Corners
v Tunisia, Group Stage (Kane, via John Stones header, from Ashley Young corner)
v Tunisia, Group Stage (Kane, via Harry Maguire header, from Kieran Trippier corner)
v Panama, Group Stage (Stones, header, from Trippier corner)
v Sweden, Quarter-Final (Maguire, header, from Young corner)
One Free-Kick
v Panama, Group Stage (Stones, via Jordan Henderson, Kane header, and Raheem Sterling, from Tripper free-kick)
