Pope Leo XIV mourned the death of a Lebanese Maronite Catholic priest, Father Pierre El-Rahi, who died on Monday as he sought to assist parishioners whose house had been fired upon by an Israeli tank, according to Lebanese media reports.
Fr. El-Rahi rushed to the house in the mountainous area of his parish with several young people when the tank struck the house again, wounding Fr. El-Rahi. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died from his wounds.
Pope Leo XIV said, “Father Pierre was a true shepherd who always remained beside his people with the love and sacrifice of Jesus the Good Shepherd. May the Lord grant that the blood he shed be a seed of peace for beloved Lebanon.”