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Lebanon’s Rahi, Audeh Slam Politicians for Failing to Elect New President

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi during Palm Sunday mass. (Markazia)
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi during Palm Sunday mass. (Markazia)
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Lebanon’s Rahi, Audeh Slam Politicians for Failing to Elect New President

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi during Palm Sunday mass. (Markazia)
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi during Palm Sunday mass. (Markazia)

Lebanon’s Christian religious leaders slammed on Sunday politicians for failing to elect a new president, amid a vacuum that has continued for five months and despite recent attempts to revive efforts to agree on a candidate.

During the Palm Sunday mass, Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi called on politicians to “destroy the sin of corruption, self-interest and egoism” and to elect a president.

He said the best politicians are those who are committed to telling the truth and realizing that the power entrusted to them is for service.

The true politician is a servant, and when he does not perform his duty, then he is a bad politician, the patriarch stressed.

Rahi said the politicians, especially deputies, “must know that the guarantee of a just policy is the election of a president who possesses these characteristics who can set straight state institutions.”

He announced that the Patriarchate is preparing for a spiritual retreat for Christian MPs in Harissa on April 5 when “they will pray for Lebanon and its salvation from its political, living, economic and financial crises.”

Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Beirut Elias Audeh said during his Sunday sermon that Lebanon is “full of leaders, politicians, deputies, and rulers who only care about their interests, and work only according to their affiliations.”

“They are not ashamed of what they have brought the country to,” he added.

“Institutions are blocked, civil servants are on strike, billions of liras are wasted and they are begging for help. How can they live without conscience and sleep without worry?” he said.

He stressed that Lebanon needs real leaders.

“We need people who think and have a vision of a cause to defend, not politicians who abuse power and the people,” Audeh added.

Lebanon has been without a president since Michel Aoun's term ended on Oct. 31. MPs have not been able to elect a successor even though 11 parliamentary electoral sessions have been held to agree on a candidate.

According to the Lebanese constitution, the 128-member legislature requires a majority of two-thirds (85) to elect a president in the first round, and then in the second round, a candidate can be elected by a simple majority of 65 lawmakers.

During the 11 parliamentary sessions, Hezbollah, Amal and Free Patriotic Movement lawmakers quit the meeting before the second round of voting, leading to a loss of quorum.

Meanwhile, the head of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc, MP Mohammed Raad, called Sunday on all political forces to prioritize the national interest in order to save the country.

He stressed the need to elect a president without waiting for foreign orders.

“We are not aspiring to take power in this country, but we are keen to see an authority capable of meeting the aspirations of the people. We refuse unilateral decisions in managing people's affairs,” Raad said.

The deputy said Hezbollah is open to dialogue.

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Arab World

Ceasefire Efforts Enter an 'Open-Ended Pause,' Unsettling Lebanese

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun holding talks with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (File - National News Agency)
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun holding talks with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (File - National News Agency)
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Ceasefire Efforts Enter an 'Open-Ended Pause,' Unsettling Lebanese

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun holding talks with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (File - National News Agency)
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun holding talks with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (File - National News Agency)

Lebanese-US efforts to secure a ceasefire have entered a prolonged “open-ended pause,” with no clear indication of when it might end, while the decisive factor remains tied to developments on the ground as the war between Hezbollah and Israel in the south reaches its peak.

This has raised concern among political circles tracking the situation, amid fears that the pause could drag on, leaving Lebanon on its own in the absence of any external push to end the war, and opening the door for President Joseph Aoun to call for direct negotiations with Israel to proceed under the cover of a truce that would relieve pressure created by ongoing hostilities from both sides.

These circles note that ceasefire efforts remain stalled, colliding with Israel’s insistence on delivering a “decisive blow” to Hezbollah to eliminate its stockpile of heavy rockets. In parallel, they say, the group continues to confront Israel’s ground advance in the south to prevent it from securing deeper control over areas south of the Litani River, amid Israeli threats to destroy what remains of bridges linking the river’s southern and northern banks.

Rejection on both sides

Sources confirm there is no prospect of a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, which remains committed to its weapons and is now engaged in what it describes as an “existential battle.” Relinquishing its arms without guarantees, they say, would amount to voluntarily ending its political role.

The same position, the sources add, applies to Israel, backed by the US, which will not halt hostilities unless it eliminates Hezbollah’s weapons as part of ending the role of Iran-aligned actors in the region.

According to the sources, a ceasefire decision is not supported by either side, Hezbollah or Israel and is fully tied to the trajectory of the broader conflict involving Iran, the US, and Israel. This linkage has stalled Aoun’s call for direct negotiations in the absence of guarantees for a truce. Ending the war in the south, they stress, goes beyond the local arena and is directly connected to the wider confrontation on the Iranian front, making the two fronts inseparable.

The sources add that dialogue between Aoun and Hezbollah, for which Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri had helped prepare the ground, remains suspended, as decision-making lies not with the party’s political wing but with its military wing, with which there is no presidential channel. They say Aoun does not bear responsibility for the breakdown, which was triggered by Secretary-General Naim Qassem backing away from a pledge not to intervene militarily in support of Iran.

They argue there is no value in dialogue that will not produce results as long as authority rests with a military wing directly linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, even if its leadership seeks to justify this by citing the absence of guarantees. The sources reveal that the group has not received assurances regarding its political future; otherwise, it would not hand over its weapons “for free” to the state while Israel continues its occupation of the south and refuses to commit to the cessation-of-hostilities agreement implemented unilaterally more than a year and three months ago.

The same sources say that while the group’s leadership, represented by Qassem, supports Berri’s demand to implement the agreement brokered by France and the US and applied by Lebanon since November 27, 2024, it questions why Washington has stepped back from guarantees ensuring the agreement’s implementation through synchronized steps between Lebanon and Israel.

While the group avoids addressing Qassem’s reversal on supporting Iran, the sources say the issue has been settled between the allies and moved past, without dwelling on the stance of ministers aligned with Berri who backed cabinet decisions, in contrast to those aligned with the group who abstained, reflecting its insistence on avoiding a dispute with its only remaining ally.

Berri focuses on displaced

While Berri is currently focused on supporting efforts led by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam’s government, in cooperation with civil society and NGOs, to provide shelter and basic needs for displaced people, he is also urging them to comply with security measures to maintain stability and prevent tensions with host communities. He praised local support efforts and stressed that maintaining security and stability is a “red line” to safeguard civil peace.

Berri’s prioritization of accommodating displaced populations and preparing for further waves, driven by Israeli pressure through displacement and systematic destruction of homes, has prompted questions among observers as to why he has not reactivated his political role.

These circles say the answer ultimately lies with him, noting he was the first to welcome a ceasefire and reject negotiations under pressure. This explains his demand for guarantees on the implementation of any agreement, for which the US bears responsibility, to prevent Lebanon from being drawn into new negotiations without clarity on venue, timing, or agenda, especially when an agreement brokered by France and the US already exists and is overseen by the “mechanism committee” tasked with implementing Resolution 1701, but remains dependent on US follow-through.

The sources also pointed to remarks by US Ambassador to Beirut Michael Issa following a meeting with Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rahi, welcoming Aoun’s call for direct negotiations with Israel. They said he effectively acknowledged the initiative but, instead of facilitating it, undermined it by implying it would take place under fire, rather than through US intervention to halt the war and create conditions for negotiations under US sponsorship and guarantees.

Arab World

Israel Strikes Main Bridge in South Lebanon, Orders Destruction of Homes Near Border

This photograph shows the destroyed Qasmiye Bridge built over the Litani River, following an Israeli airstrike, in Qasmiye on March 18, 2026. (Photo by KAWNAT HAJU / AFP)
This photograph shows the destroyed Qasmiye Bridge built over the Litani River, following an Israeli airstrike, in Qasmiye on March 18, 2026. (Photo by KAWNAT HAJU / AFP)
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Israel Strikes Main Bridge in South Lebanon, Orders Destruction of Homes Near Border

This photograph shows the destroyed Qasmiye Bridge built over the Litani River, following an Israeli airstrike, in Qasmiye on March 18, 2026. (Photo by KAWNAT HAJU / AFP)
This photograph shows the destroyed Qasmiye Bridge built over the Litani River, following an Israeli airstrike, in Qasmiye on March 18, 2026. (Photo by KAWNAT HAJU / AFP)

Israel struck a main bridge linking Lebanon's south to the rest of the country on Sunday after ordering its military to destroy all crossings over Lebanon's Litani River and to step up the demolition of homes near the southern border.

The destruction of bridges and homes marks a significant escalation in Israel's military campaign in Lebanon, which was pulled into the regional war on March 2 when armed group Hezbollah fired into Israeli territory.

International law generally prohibits militaries from attacking civilian infrastructure, and the United Nations human rights chief has criticised Israel's actions in Lebanon, particularly its use of widespread evacuation orders.

Sunday's strike pulverized a crossing on Lebanon's coastal highway that ran through farmland and was one of the main routes linking southern and central Lebanon, according to Reuters.

An Israeli military spokesperson had announced the army would strike the bridge earlier on Sunday.

Lama al-Fares, who lives on farmland adjacent to the crossing, said her family packed whatever they could into their car when they saw the warning. They drove about a kilometer north on the highway and waited out the strike on a hilltop overlooking the highway.

"Our house is right next to the bridge. It was destroyed in the last war and we had rebuilt a basic structure to live in - I hope it's still standing," she told Reuters.

Israel's strikes on Lebanon have killed more than 1,000 people, including nearly 120 children, 80 women and 40 medical personnel, according to Lebanon's health ministry.

The Israeli military had already destroyed three bridges in southern Lebanon in the last 10 days.

'HUMANITARIAN CATASTROPHE'

Ramzi Kaiss, Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch, told Reuters that international law requires armed actors to take into account the civilian harm caused by strikes on infrastructure like bridges, even if the targets were being used for military purposes.

"If all these bridges are struck, and the region that is south of the Litani becomes isolated from the rest of the country, then the civilian harm is going to be so immense that you have a humanitarian catastrophe as people still living in the south won't be able to access food, medicine and other basic needs," Kaiss said.

Destroying homes in southern Lebanon wholesale would amount to wanton destruction, which is a war crime, he added.

The Israeli military says its troops are carrying out what it describes as ground maneuvers and targeted raids on Hezbollah militants and weapons stores in southern Lebanon. Israeli officials say the air and ground campaigns are aimed at protecting residents in northern Israel near the Lebanese border from Hezbollah attacks.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot met with his Israeli counterpart, Gideon Saar, in Jerusalem on Friday, telling reporters that he had expressed France's reservations about a ground operation of "significant scale and duration".

Barrot said he had urged Lebanese and Israeli officials to find a lasting solution, which he said could not be achieved through military force alone.

Earlier this month, Katz warned the Lebanese government it would face infrastructure damage and territorial losses unless Hezbollah was disarmed. The Lebanese government has outlawed Hezbollah military activity and said it wanted to engage in direct talks with Israel.

Arab World

Katz: Orders for Israel Army to Destroy More Bridges in South Lebanon

Israeli military vehicles are parked on the Israeli side of the border with Lebanon, March 21, 2026. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu
Israeli military vehicles are parked on the Israeli side of the border with Lebanon, March 21, 2026. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu
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Katz: Orders for Israel Army to Destroy More Bridges in South Lebanon

Israeli military vehicles are parked on the Israeli side of the border with Lebanon, March 21, 2026. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu
Israeli military vehicles are parked on the Israeli side of the border with Lebanon, March 21, 2026. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Sunday that the army had been ordered to destroy more bridges over the Litani river being used by Hezbollah in south Lebanon and to step up the demolition of houses.

"Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I instructed the 'army' to immediately destroy all the bridges over the Litani River that are used for terrorist activity, in order to prevent Hezbollah terrorists and weapons from moving south," Katz said in a statement.

He said the military was also instructed to "accelerate the demolition of Lebanese houses in the contact villages in order to thwart threats to Israeli communities".