Yazigi Says Only Dialogue is in Nation's Interest
Greek Orthodox leader Youhanna X Yazigi has hoped that talks among the country's rivals would lead to stability, stressing that only dialogue is in Lebanon's favor.
In remarks to As Safir daily published on Monday, Yazigi, who is the Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, encouraged dialogue among all of Lebanon's factions.
“Sitting on the same table … is the only measure that leads to positive results that are in the nation's interest,” he said.
“Resorting to other means would not lead to results,” the patriarch told As Safir.
Hizbullah and al-Mustaqbal Movement have been holding talks since December to defuse sectarian tension. A similar dialogue is expected to be held between presidential candidates Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea and Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun.
Yazigi hoped for peace in the region and mainly in Syria and Lebanon.
He also called on certain states to push for peaceful solutions to the region's crises and contribute to the election of a new president in Lebanon.
The country has been without a head of state since President Michel Suleiman's term ended in May last year.
The civil war in Syria has spilled over into Lebanon, whose major political factions either back the regime of President Bashar Assad or the rebels seeking to topple him.
Their rivalry has led to different rounds of fighting mainly in the northern city of Tripoli, leaving scores dead and injured.
The country's troubles worsened with the rise of the threat of terrorism either by Syria-based militants carrying out cross border raids or by Lebanese gunmen who have pledged allegiance to them.
Source: Naharnet
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