Al-Rahi Meets Saudi Leaders and Hariri in Riyadh
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi held separate talks Tuesday in in Riyadh with Saudi King Salman, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Prime Minister Saad Hariri as part of a historic visit to the kingdom.
The visit comes amid tensions between the two countries after Hariri's shock resignation.
The patriarch and the king "reviewed fraternal relations between the kingdom and Lebanon and confirmed the importance of the role of different religions and cultures in promoting tolerance, renouncing violence, extremism and terrorism," the state-run Saudi Press Agency said.
Al-Rahi later met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Hariri.
Hariri's Future TV said the Rahi-Hariri meeting was "excellent" and that it tackled "the latest local developments."
LBCI television said Hariri did not inform al-Rahi of a date for his return to Lebanon. The TV network however reported that Hariri is expected to return to Lebanon this week or at the beginning of next week.
Hariri stepped down during a televised address on November 4 from Riyadh, where he is rumored to be under de facto house arrest, despite his insistence that he was "free."
Al-Rahi's trip symbolizes a rare inter-religious exchange in the ultra-conservative kingdom, which is home to the holiest sights in Islam.
"Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi's... visit stresses the kingdom's approach for peaceful coexistence, closeness and openness for all sections of Arabic people," Saudi Gulf affairs minister Thamer al-Sabhan said on Twitter.
Upon his arrival, the patriarch met with members of the Lebanese community.
"We will maintain a strong friendship between Saudi Arabia and Lebanon," he said.
"This is our history even if we have had stormy relations sometimes. (There) is a history of friendship with this dear kingdom."
Hariri's resignation, which has thrown Lebanon into crisis, came against the backdrop of mounting tensions between Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran, which back opposing sides in power struggles in hotspots such as Syria and Yemen.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian has said France was "worried by the situation in Lebanon" and wanted to see the government there "stabilize as quickly as possible."
He is set to visit the Saudi capital on Thursday.
France joined Germany and the European Union on Monday in calling for an end to external interference in Lebanon.
14 November 2017, 19:20
40
He agrees with the Saudi King that democracy is a terrible idea. Article 24 of the Lebanese Constitution reserves half of the Lebanese Parliament for Christian representatives, even though only a quarter of the population is Christian. Shias by themselves are the majority of Lebanese, according to Noam Chomsky. So, two dysfunctional states, Lebanon and KSA, on either said of another, Israel: all failed-states-by-design. Whose design, eh?
14 November 2017, 21:30
30
The Saudi designed Taef agreement stole from the majority Shias to give the Christians who are only a quarter of the Lebanese population.
14 November 2017, 13:55
05
A picture speaks a thousand words!
"tric.portugal:
the Saudis gonna accepted Hariri to meet with the Lebanese Patriarch !??? my bet in no...the Saudi gonna say that Hariri are in a "(...)in a reflective state,"..."
14 November 2017, 17:08
04
I am a Christian and I do not see the need for churches in Saudi Arabia unless there is a native Christian population which is not the case. A church is not a building but a group of people who believe in the Christian faith. Christians can practice their faith anywhere they choose. The freedom to practice the faith is a lot more important than building a building and calling it a church.
15 November 2017, 10:04
00
Yes Irena, the poster must have mistaken you for one of the trolls. I can attest that all your comments have been civil, polite and engaging.
