Al-Rahi Meets Aoun over Govt., Judiciary, Drug Smuggling

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi on Monday visited President Michel Aoun at the Baabda Palace to discuss a host of current issues.

“During the meeting, the essential topic was discussed, which is the need to form a government and to resolve the difficulties blocking this formation,” al-Rahi said after the talks.

“There is no important justification for the failure to form a government amid the current situations,” the patriarch added.

Commenting on the latest controversy over the raids of Judge Ghada Aoun on the Mecattaf money exchange firm, al-Rahi said he emphasized on “the dignity of the judiciary and the dignity, integrity and freedom of the judge.”

He, however, underlined that “this judge should not belong to any (political) group” and that politicians “should not interfere in the affairs of judges.”

Al-Rahi added that he also raised the issue of drug smuggling from Lebanon to some Arab countries and Saudi Arabia’s latest ban on Lebanese produce after it announced seizing a Captagon shipment from Lebanon.

“The issue of smuggling is tarnishing the image of Lebanon,” al-Rahi lamented, decrying that “Lebanon has become a passageway for drugs and for smuggling Captagon pills to the Gulf via Saudi Arabia, which has closed the doors in our face.”

Responding to a reporter’s question, al-Rahi said “the Vatican and Bkirki no not attack anyone but are rather being attacked.”