Rahi Calls on the United Nations to 'Save Lebanon'

 Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi called on the UN to hold an international conference on Lebanon. (NNA)
Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi called on the UN to hold an international conference on Lebanon. (NNA)
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Rahi Calls on the United Nations to 'Save Lebanon'

 Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi called on the UN to hold an international conference on Lebanon. (NNA)
Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi called on the UN to hold an international conference on Lebanon. (NNA)

Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi urged to the United Nations to save Lebanon by holding an international conference – a call that was supported by country’s opposition parties and rejected by Shiites.

“Faced with Parliament’s drastic failure to elect a new president of the republic, with the five sessions being a farcical drama...and the failure of all internal dialogues...we find no solution except to call for an international conference to renew the guarantee of the independent Lebanese entity, the democratic system and the state’s exclusive control over its lands, based on the constitution and then on all international resolutions pertaining to Lebanon,” the Patriarch said during the Sunday mass in Bkerki.

He continued: “Any delay in adopting this constitutional and international solution would drag the country into non-peaceful dangers that no party can withstand.”

Rahi’s call was endorsed by Hezbollah’s opponents. A letter signed by the Meeting of Our Lady of the Mountain, the National Gathering, and the National Initiative Movement, expressed support to the patriarch’s positions and called on Bkerki to establish a national front to defend the country’s “legitimacy, positive neutrality, the international conference for Taif and the constitution, and the resolutions of international legitimacy.”

On the other hand, Rahi’s sermon prompted a response from the Development and Liberation bloc, which is headed by Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.

Sources from the bloc told Asharq Al-Awsat: “The main problem in the presidential elections is between the Christians themselves.”

“Can Bkerki or any other Lebanese side play a consensual role or at least unify the vision and criteria… especially since the presidential elections… concern the Christians in the first place?” They asked.

For his part, Jaafari Mufti Ahmed Qabalan warned that an international conference would harm Lebanon’s sovereignty.

“The interest of Christians and Muslims is to agree on a national president through Parliament and implement a project for a strong state, national partnership and effective constitutional institutions, away from international stances that consider Lebanon… an arena for settlements,” he stated.



Israel Says It Severely Damaged Yemeni Ports, Vows to Kill Houthi Leader

Smoke billows after Israeli strikes on Hodeidah port, Yemen, July 21, 2024. (Reuters file)
Smoke billows after Israeli strikes on Hodeidah port, Yemen, July 21, 2024. (Reuters file)
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Israel Says It Severely Damaged Yemeni Ports, Vows to Kill Houthi Leader

Smoke billows after Israeli strikes on Hodeidah port, Yemen, July 21, 2024. (Reuters file)
Smoke billows after Israeli strikes on Hodeidah port, Yemen, July 21, 2024. (Reuters file)

Israel said it attacked and severely damaged Houthi-controlled ports in Yemen on Friday, with its defense minister vowing in a statement to hunt down and kill the group's leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi.

Israel attacked Yemen's ports of Hodeidah and Salif along the country's Red Sea coast on Friday, the Houthi-run Al Masirah TV said, in an apparent response to the Iran-backed group's missile launches against Israel.

Al Masirah did not provide further details, but two residents in Hodeidah said they heard four loud booms.

The Houthis have continued to fire missiles at Israel in what they say is solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, although they have agreed to halt attacks on US ships.

The Israeli military, which has carried out numerous retaliatory strikes on Houthi targets, intercepted a missile launched by the group on Thursday.

Earlier this week, Israel issued evacuation orders for the ports of Ras Isa, Hodeidah and Salif, saying they were being used by the Houthis.