"UNIFIL is a message of hope". In these words of the Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, the meaning of the meeting with Major General Luciano Portolano, head of mission and commander of the UN Forces in southern Lebanon, which took place yesterday morning at the patriarchal headquarters in Beirut.
At the center of the conversation is the complex political-institutional crisis that does not allow for the election of the president of the republic and the need for dialogue between the various components of the country, necessary to guide Lebanon out of the political impasse in which over a year and a half.
"Despite the situation in southern Lebanon, it continues to remain calm and stable," said the general, "even the area of responsibility of UNIFIL is affected by the presidential vacuum. "I believe that the key to contributing to the stability not only of the south but of the entire country by UNIFIL lies in the close cooperation with the Lebanese Armed Forces but above all in working with the Lebanese people and not for it. It is therefore necessary that what has been done in the south can be replicated throughout the country and that the entire Lebanese population as well as that of the south is capable of taking responsibility for their own future, "continued General Portolano.
For his part, the patriarch expressed his full appreciation for the work of UNIFIL, fully sharing and adopting the general's thought, thus highlighting how fundamental it is that Lebanese men and women become aware of the fact that the responsibility for a future of peace and stability steps through their own hands.
The meeting was also an opportunity to exchange greetings on the upcoming holidays.
