Al-Rahi on presidential crisis: Only solution is voting not dialogue or consensus

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi criticized Wednesday Lebanon's leaders who are calling for dialogue instead of electing a president.

"They are hiding behind dialogue and consensus, while there is only one constitutional solution," al-Rahi said, stressing that the solution is to elect a president in parliament.

Al-Rahi considered that a president should be elected through voting not consensus, according to the constitution, dubbing the presidential impasse "a farce" and calling the MPs to put an end to it.

Crisis-hit Lebanon has already been without a head of state for more than eight months, after 12 attempts to elect a president failed amid major political disputes.

The international community has urged politicians to elect a presidential candidate who can help the country enact reforms required to unlock billions of dollars in loans from abroad, and France has called for a dialogue in September.

While Hezbollah and Amal have also called for dialogue, opposition MPs say any dialogue with Hezbollah is "futile" and consider that a president should be elected through voting not consensus or dialogue.