Pope Francis held his first weekly general audience in public on Wednesday, six months since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and announced an international day of prayer and fasting for Lebanon.

About 500 people attended the audience, held in the San Damaso courtyard of the Vatican's Apostolic Palace.

Nearly all wore masks and kept physically distant in pre-arranged seats.

"After so many months, we resume our encounters face-to-face and not screen-to-screen, face-to-face, and this is beautiful," he said to applause at the start of the audience.

The pope last held an audience with a public crowd in early March. After that, he held virtual audiences transmitted from the official papal library over television or the internet.

At the end of the audience, the pope invited a Lebanese priest to the front to hold up the Lebanese flag as he made an appeal for peace and dialogue in Lebanon.

For more info, please go to https://globalnews.ca/news/7306442/coronavirus-vatican-lockdown/

Subscribe to Global News Channel HERE: http://bit.ly/20fcXDc
Like Global News on Facebook HERE: http://bit.ly/255GMJQ
Follow Global News on Twitter HERE: http://bit.ly/1Toz8mt
Follow Global News on Instagram HERE: https://bit.ly/2QZaZIB
#GlobalNews