The current Mufti of the Republic, Abdellatif Deriane, will now be able to remain in office until the age of 76. (Credit: AFP)
BEIRUT — Meeting in ordinary session in Beirut on Saturday, the legislative body of Dar al-Fatwa, the highest Sunni authority, extended the term of Lebanon's current Grand Mufti, Sheikh Abdellatif Deriane, raising the maximum age limit for the position from 72 to 76.
Dar al-Fatwa is a government institution created in 1922, that is tasked with issuing legal rulings specific to Lebanon's Sunni Muslim community.
In a press release, the members of the institution stated their "unanimous" agreement to amend article 6 of decree number 18 of 1955, and article 4 of decision number 50 of 1996, concerning the mandate duration of Lebanon's Muftis.
Deriane was elected to the post in the summer of 2014, and was due to leave office in less than two years from now. The question of extending Deriane's mandate has caused a stir in Sunni political circles, which were affected by the withdrawal of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri from the local scene in early 2022.
In the same statement, the institution condemned the clashes in the Ain el-Hilweh refugee camp, which have raged since Friday between members of Fatah, and Islamist factions, declaring that the violence "offended the Palestinian cause and served the Zionist enemy [Israel]."
The statement also called for an end to the presidential vacuum, which has persisted since last autumn.