Head of Maronite Christian Church in Lebanon voices support for peace with Israel, calls for direct talks

The Patriarch Bechara al-Rahi, head of the Maronite Christian Church in Lebanon, expressed his support for direct negotiations with Israel to achieve peace – not normalization – between the two countries during an interview he gave to the Lebanese channel LBC on Saturday.

“We cannot remain in this situation. The South is on the ground, Dahiyeh is on the ground. The houses are on the ground,” he explained, adding, “Who wants to rebuild them while we aren't speaking to each other?”

In another interview he gave to the Saudi-owned newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat on the occasion of Pope Leo XIV’s visit to Lebanon, al-Rahi said that the Americans must influence Israel and pressure it to stop violating Lebanon’s sovereignty, but at the same time, Hezbollah must free itself from Iran’s control, hand over its weapons, and move toward political activity.

Al-Rahi also noted that the Pope’s visit to Lebanon is a message of peace and a call to avoid war, directed both at the Lebanese and at the Israelis.

Hezbollah published an open letter to the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Leo XIV, who is expected to arrive in Lebanon tomorrow.

In the letter, the terror group expressed its opposition to “any forced foreign intervention in Lebanon and the Lebanese people, intervention that would strip them of national decision-making and governing authority.”

It also stated that the organization “stands behind the Lebanese Army and the Lebanese people in everything related to repelling Israeli aggression and occupation in Lebanon,” while accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and of “ongoing and reprehensible aggression whose only aim is to impose security dictates and political expansion by Israel.”

Want to help more people find our reporting from Israel? Leave a quick Google review of our website here.