Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Butros al-Rahi deemed Sunday that there could be no peace in the Middle East unless the international legitimacy works to find a just, lasting and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue.

"The Middle East will not know peace unless the international legitimacy finds a just, lasting and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian cause that guarantees the Palestinian people's legitimate right to have their own state on the land where they have lived for centuries," stressed al-Rahi.

The Patriarch's words came as he presided over Sunday Mass at the Transfiguration Church in the border town of Rmeish following its inauguration.

"Being here on the Southern borders, we cannot but recall our connection to Jerusalem, the holy city on whose land redemption occurred...Jerusalem is a holy city for both the Jewish religion and Islam as well, in which all believers in God of the three religions are invited, by divine providence, to live together in peace, building God's peace in the world," added al-Rahi.

"Hence, we cannot accept the Judaization of Jerusalem," asserted the Patriarch, referring to US President Trump's decision to declare Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Al-Rahi called, herein, for adhering to the Apostolic Chair's stance in this respect, namely that "Jerusalem would have a special international status that protects all the holy sites belonging to each of the three religions," and that "Jerusalem would be a universal symbol of brotherhood and peace, based on its stable peace

Source: NNA