Al-Rahi Meets Pope at Vatican, to Head Mass on St. Maroun Occasion on Monday
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi held a meeting on Friday with Pope Francis at the Vatican, the state-run National News Agency reported.
Al-Rahi is expected to head a mass at 7:00 pm on Monday at the Maronite College in Rome on the occasion of Saint Maroun.
The Patriarch traveled on Tuesday to the Vatican on a three-week visit to take part in the meeting of the College of the Cardinals.
Al-Rahi briefed the pope on the security situation in Lebanon and the conditions of the Christians.
For his part, the pope expressed to al-Rahi his solidarity with Christians in the Middle East, stressing the need for their presence in the region.
Al-Rahi will reportedly meet with the Director of the Department of the Middle East and North Africa at the French Foreign Ministry, Jean-François Girault,at the Vatican.
Talks are expected to focus on the presidential deadlock in Lebanon.
The French diplomat concluded on Thursday a two-day visit to Lebanon as his country is seeking to press officials to end the presidential stalemate and ease the tension.
Lebanon has been without a president since May when the term of Michel Suleiman ended without the election of his successor.
Ongoing disputes between the rival March 8 and 14 camps have thwarted the elections.
Girault recently held talks in Riyadh, Tehran, Washington and the Vatican over the presidential crisis in Lebanon. He also met with al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri in Saudi Arabia.
H.K.
M.T.
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