Patriarch Bechara al-Rai during mass in September 2024. (Credit: NNA)
Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rai said, “The sons of the Shiite community have had enough of the war and want to live in peace.”
“There is strong Lebanese consensus on the implementation of the decision to disarm Hezbollah,” he added.
Speaking to Al-Arabiya TV, Rai stated that “the statements of Hezbollah’s Secretary-General, Naim Qassem, are nothing more than rhetorical posturing and there will be no civil war in Lebanon.”
The Patriarch further said that “Hezbollah must come to the conviction that the army protects all Lebanese, without distinction,” and recalled that “coexistence is what characterises Lebanon and is enshrined in the Constitution.”
“Hezbollah has emptied resistance of its true meaning; resistance is not about submitting to Iran’s dictates,” the Patriarch reiterated in one of his most virulent criticisms of Hezbollah.
He continued that “the Lebanese government’s decision is clear: to put an end to illegal arms.” He stressed that “Hezbollah must think about its ‘Lebaneseness,’” adding that “the war in support of Gaza has brought ruin to Lebanon,” he said.
Rai believes that priority should be given to reconstruction and recovery, not war. “The Shiite community is a Lebanese community that existed before the inception of what is called the resistance,” the Patriarch added. “Hezbollah must have total allegiance to Lebanon and end its allegiance to Iran.”
His remarks come after the Cabinet’s decision to disarm armed groups in Lebanon, including Hezbollah, and to approve the U.S. roadmap presented by U.S. Envoy Tom Barrack to the authorities. The Lebanese Army was subsequently tasked with submitting a plan by Aug. 31 that outlines the steps for disarmament to be carried out before the end of the year.
These decisions have sparked anger in Qassem, who delivered a strong-worded speech last Friday, reiterating his party’s refusal to hand over its weapons and even threatening civil war. This speech was made the day after Iran’s Envoy Ali Larijani visited Lebanon, where he reiterated his support for maintaining arms.
In this context, the patriarch described Iran’s interference in the Lebanese affairs as “flagrant” and emphasized that “resistance is not synonymous with obedience to Iranian orders.”
“There is no obstacle to peace with Israel in the future, when conditions are right,” revealing that “the Pope’s visit to Lebanon will take place before the end of this year.”
Hezbollah opened a front in support of Hamas one day after the Palestinian Islamist group carried out an attack inside Israeli territory on Oct. 7, 2023. This offensive plunged the Gaza Strip into a war with Israel that has been ongoing for nearly two years. In Lebanon, this new war with Israel left Hezbollah severely weakened and deprived it of its key leaders and political and military figures, including its former secretary-general, Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed on Sept. 27, 2024.
This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour and translated by Joelle El-Khoury.
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