Al-Rahi's sermon denounces Gaza 'atrocities,' emphasizes Lebanon's neutrality

Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros al-Rahi condemned the "barbaric genocidal war" taking place in Gaza.

During his Sunday sermon in the Divine Liturgy in Bkerke, al-Rahi affirmed his rejection of spreading the war to southern villages, emphasizing that Lebanon is not a land of war but one of dialogue and peace.

Al-Rahi considered that spreading the war to southern Lebanon was contrary to Resolution 1701, and he stressed the necessity for Lebanon to return to neutrality, serving as a defender through diplomacy for any violated rights. 

He pointed out that the Baabda Declaration affirmed Lebanon's neutrality, endorsed by the Security Council, and called for its implementation in "both letter and spirit."

The Cardinal emphasized that Lebanon's neutrality is not a new matter but has been at the core of Lebanon's identity since 1860, constituting political neutrality where it neither fights nor is fought against.