The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, John X, received today the head of the Free Patriotic Movement, MP Gebran Bassil, on top of a delegation that included MPs George Atallah and Asaad Dergham, and the movement’s candidate in Koura, Ghassan Karam.

During the meeting, Bassil offered condolences to Patriarch John X for the victims of the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, saying: “We are facing a great human tragedy that affected the Syrian and Turkish peoples, and our sympathy is with every affected person from all sects and societies, especially those for whom aid is difficult to reach in light of the difficult circumstances.”

Bassil called for the immediate lifting of sanctions imposed on Syria, as the current blockade is restricting the efforts to provide the Syrian people with the basic needs to respond to the devastating earthquake that struck the country.

Regarding the presidential election, Bassil supported the call of the Christian Patriarchs who delegated Patriarch Al-Rahi to make an agreement on electing a President for the Republic, saying: ”It is a national merit and not only a Christian or a Maronite entitlement, and we are bound to agree, especially if it takes place according to the constitution and the quorum.”

Source: National News Agency