Al-Rahi Urges Tripoli Residents to Halt Violence, Reach Reconciliation

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi called on officials from the northern city of Tripoli to exercise efforts to end the clashes in the city.

He urged during his Sunday sermon “the residents of Bab al-Tabbaneh and Jabal Mohsen to halt the cycle of violence and reach reconciliation.”

“We look forward to the efforts of the army and security forces to impose security and stability in the city,” he added.

“We cannot accept the suffering of Tripoli and that the image of Lebanon's second largest city, which has been the symbol of mutual coexistence, be tarnished,” continued the patriarch.

“We were hoping to visit the city and take part in a reconciliation to put an end to the violence,” al-Rahi said.

Clashes erupted in Tripoli over a week ago in light of news of the death of a number of Lebanese fighters, who mainly hail from the North, in the Syrian border town of Tall Kalakh.

Conflicting reports emerged over the exact number of fighters who were killed in an ambush by Syrian regime forces.

Four people were killed overnight in the clashes between the rival neighborhoods of Bab al-Tabbaneh and Jabal Mohsen, bringing the toll of the latest round of fighting to 17.