Al-Rahi Receives “Naked” and “Mouawad”… “Salameh”: Lebanon’s Neutrality is the Way to Restore its Role

Lebanon Today

His Beatitude Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, Patriarch of the Maronite Church, received His Excellency Former Minister Youssef Salameh, head of the “Identity and Sovereignty Forum,” at the patriarchal edifice in Bkerke today at noon.

Following this fruitful meeting, Salameh made a brief statement in which he said: “No one can ignore the historical role that Bkerke has played in strengthening the Lebanese entity, and the pivotal role it played in the establishment of Greater Lebanon, with its firm commitment to the culture of coexistence between different sects, its challenge to the psychological obstacles that have accumulated over the decades, and its deep belief in universal humanity and unified identity.”

Salameh pointed out that “Lebanon is going through a critical stage today in which the features of a new Middle East are being formed, and is undergoing a difficult birth according to new standards and balances, and that the state of tension it is witnessing cannot be overcome except by engaging in serious negotiations.”

He considered that “it is best that the starting point in these upcoming negotiations be the armistice agreement signed between Lebanon and Israel in 1949, which was approved after direct negotiations between the two parties, and that completing it today, taking into account the balance of power and the requirements of the times, is a duty to revive Lebanon and enable it to be centered in a neutrality that fortifies its mission and restores its leading role.”

Salameh affirmed that “after it became clear that the state was hesitant to decide its options, and given the need to expedite implementation, I appealed to His Beatitude to invoke history and act with parental responsibility towards this country, transcending the textual restrictions that their authors have disavowed. In the absence of the agent, the principal is present and decides the matter, especially if the goal is to save a country from death.”

He added: “Fate has willed that history repeat itself, and that Bkerke has a role in reformulating the new Lebanon, in making peace, and in enshrining and protecting Lebanon’s identity, so that it can interact with sophistication with the future of the region.”

Salameh concluded his statement by saying: “In the absence of the state, which has the exclusive right to protect Lebanon, those who have been given the glory of Lebanon must not hesitate and bear their responsibility, and I hope that they will take the initiative before it is too late.”

Later in the day, Al-Rahi received Engineer Asaad Nakad, Chairman of the Board and General Manager of Electricité de Zahlé, who praised “the Patriarch’s comprehensive national positions and the efforts he makes to preserve Lebanon and its stability,” and discussed with him “the electrical stability enjoyed by the city of Zahlé and 16 neighboring towns at a rate of 24 hours a day and with savings exceeding 30 percent compared to the rest of the regions.”

For his part, Al-Rahi praised “the work of the Electricité de Zahlé Foundation,” expressing his hope that “this model will spread to include all Lebanese regions.”

Patriarch Al-Rahi invited Engineer Nakad to lunch in Bkerke.

His Beatitude also received the head of the Mount Lebanon Intelligence Branch: Brigadier General Tony Moawad.