President of the Republic, Michel Aoun, stressed Monday that everyone should respect the work of the judiciary.

Touching on the issue of public liberties in the country, President Aoun questioned, "How many journalists are in prison? Where are the journalists who were referred to justice for freedom? How many journalists were sentenced?"

In this context, Aoun stated that "Journalist Marcel Ghanem was summoned to testify," adding, "Even a member of parliament can be summoned to testify without prejudicing his immunity."

The President's words came following his 20-minute closed meeting with Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros al-Rahi ahead of Christmas Mass in Bkirki this morning, with talks bordering hour issues.

Responding to reporters' questions on expatriates' participation in the upcoming legislative elections, the President disclosed that "voting of expatriates is being addressed in the government by both the Foreign Affairs and Interior Ministers, who are members of the ministerial committee [tasked with the implementation of the electoral law.]"

Commenting on the recent rift over the signing of a decree promoting a number of army officers, Aoun deemed that "granting one year seniority and rank to officers is a righteous demand, and any objection to this matter should be referred to the judiciary."

The President added that the decree promoting officers requires both his and Prime Minister Saad Hariri's signatures

Source: NNA