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Iraq meeting between Lebanon’s Berri, Sistani boosts moderate Shiism in region

Iraq's top Shiite authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, meets with Lebanon's parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, further highlighting Sistani's efforts to support moderate Shiism against Shiite extremism.
Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri (C) visits the shrine of Imam al-Abbas in the central Iraqi holy city of Karbala on April 2, 2019. (Photo by Mohammed SAWAF / AFP)        (Photo credit should read MOHAMMED SAWAF/AFP/Getty Images)

On the second day of his trip to Iraq, Lebanese parliament Speaker Nabih Berri met April 1 with Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, a Shiite leader known for promoting cooperation and moderate positions in the region.

Sistani told Berri, "It's important for everyone to work on establishing values of peaceful coexistence based on protection of rights and mutual respect between the different religious and ethnic components in our region, to provide security, stability, progress and prosperity for its peoples.”

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