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Lebanese Christian leaders focus on need for president

The visit of the Vatican's envoy to Lebanon coincided with a meeting between the country's top Christian leaders, Gen. Michel Aoun and Samir Geagea, who revealed a joint statement that could pave the way for a president to finally be elected.
Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rai (R) sits beside other religious clerics in a celebration to solidify the reconciliation between Christians and Druze in Brih May 17, 2014. 
REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir  (LEBANON - Tags: POLITICS RELIGION) - RTR3PLU5
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BEIRUT — Christian political and religious leaders in Beirut intensified efforts to address the conditions of Christians in the region and to find a solution to the stalemate in Lebanon, where the presidential vacuum has continued since May 25, 2014. Vatican envoy Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, leading a delegation from the Holy See, arrived in Beirut May 29.

A Lebanese official who met with Mamberti spoke about the visit to Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. He said that the cardinal is no stranger to Lebanon and its issues. He served as the Vatican's secretary for relations with states, the equivalent of foreign minister, from 2006 to 2014, a time of crisis for Lebanon. He is currently the prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.

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