Bar Association probes Bushra Khalil for comments on Patriarch Rai

BEIRUT — Attorney Bushra Khalil was questioned Tuesday by lawyer Abdo Lahoud, a member of the Beirut Bar Association council, over remarks she made criticizing Maronite Patriarch Bechara Rai.

According to information obtained by L’Orient-Le Jour, Lahoud has referred the case to Bar Association president Fadi Masri, who is expected to review it Wednesday and issue a decision. Khalil had been summoned as early as Sunday for questioning by the bar.

The attorney, known for her support of Hezbollah, had reacted sharply to comments Rai made during an interview with the Saudi-owned Al-Hadath channel, in which he said Hezbollah had “emptied the resistance of its true meaning,” arguing that “resistance is not about submitting to the diktats of Iran.” Rai added that the Shiite community was growing wary of the group’s weapons and that Hezbollah must “think about its Lebanese identity.” His remarks sparked a fierce backlash from Hezbollah supporters.

In response, Khalil said Rai “should present us with a certificate proving his Lebanese identity.” She added: “The Maronite Patriarchate has always been part of the Zionist project — read history — it has always supported Israel. The Lebanese show their true patriotism when their enemy comes to invade them; those who open their doors to the enemy cannot claim to be real Lebanese.” Her comments were published Saturday in a televised interview she shared on her Facebook page.

In another video posted the same day, Khalil likened the death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah — assassinated in an Israeli airstrike on Sept. 27, 2024 — to that of Jesus Christ. “Rai is in Bkirki making theories. I respect Bkirki as a religious institution, but they cannot dominate us. Bkirki has always been on the side of the Zionist project,” she said.