Kataeb Party leader Samy Gemayel met members of the Lebanese community in Canada during a gathering hosted by Melkite Catholic Bishop of Canada Milad Jawish, part of a broader North American tour that includes stops in Canada and the United States. Gemayel used the visit to mobilize expatriates ahead of the 2026 parliamentary elections and to outline what he described as a historic turning point for Lebanon’s political future.

The event drew a wide cross-section of community leaders and local officials, including Quebec MP Alice Abu Khalil, Kataeb Canada coordinator Gaby Ghafari, Montreal Kataeb chapter head Jacqueline Tannous, Saint-Laurent City Councillor Aref Salem, diaspora media officer Kamil Saadeh, Zahle Club president Charles Abou Khater, Rotary Club founder Maha Maalouf, businessman Jamil Choueib, attorney Joseph Dora, Archimandrite Rabih Abou Zgheib, Father Theodore Zkhor, Father Bernard Basset, church council members, journalists and dozens of Lebanese expatriates.

Bishop Jawish opened the event by welcoming Gemayel and praising the diaspora’s continued commitment to Lebanon’s stability and future. Participants underscored the importance of maintaining strong ties between Lebanon and its global community, saying expatriates remain a moral, economic and political force essential to rebuilding the country.

Gemayel told attendees he believes Lebanon has already entered a fundamentally new phase after years of overlapping crises, saying the country is “taking off despite turbulence.”

“We are opening a new page in Lebanon’s history,” he said. “The country is taking off despite all the difficulties. Just like a plane that shakes during takeoff before stabilizing, Lebanon is going through the same turbulence, and it will soon break through the clouds.”

He argued that Lebanon had been “held hostage to Iran” for the past two decades and warned that dismantling that influence will take time because Hezbollah is embedded in deep financial, security and social networks.

Gemayel cautioned that the country remains at risk of another confrontation due to Hezbollah’s insistence on preserving its arsenal and military role.

“Iran is determined to keep Hezbollah as its armed branch in Lebanon, and this puts the country at risk of a new war,” he said. “We are trying to defuse this from within, quietly. We want things resolved without destruction and without dragging Israel into another war on Lebanon. But in the end, this situation will end — either peacefully or through harder means — but it will end.”

During a brief exchange, Bishop Jawish warned that strengthening the state must not come at the expense of “breaking” any Lebanese community.

“As Christians, we have experienced the bitterness of being broken,” he said.

Gemayel responded: “This is exactly what we want: a strong state that protects all Lebanese without exception. But we cannot open a new chapter while one group refuses the principle of equality and insists on keeping its weapons and its own rules. When everyone agrees that no one is above the state, we can start a real reconciliation and build Lebanon’s future.”

He stressed that Lebanon “cannot be built on the logic of force but on justice and equality” as long as one armed group holds decisive power.

Gemayel said Lebanon is experiencing a decisive transition unlike any period since the end of the civil war.

“For the first time, we have a president and a prime minister who clearly state that their goal is to place all weapons under the authority of the State,” he said. “The pace is slow, but the direction is the right one.”

“We have a real opportunity to move Lebanon forward. If we ignore it, we return to the same tragedy. People are so disillusioned by past disappointments that they no longer distinguish between real and fake opportunities.”

He added that after decades of political struggle, this is the first time he sees “light at the end of the tunnel.”

Gemayel outlined his vision for “a new Lebanon” based on three pillars: neutrality in regional conflicts; expanded administrative decentralization to ensure equitable development; and a civil, just state grounded in law, freedom and equality.

A large portion of the meeting focused on urging expatriates to register for the 2026 elections, with Gemayel warning that current registration numbers are “extremely concerning.”

According to the Foreign Ministry, only about 51,000 expatriates have registered so far — far fewer than expected. Gemayel attributed the low turnout to political and legal ambiguity, as well as what he called “deliberate obstruction” by certain parties.

“If the number remains around 50,000, someone might later claim the turnout does not justify the logistical effort, and we lose the diaspora battle,” he said.

He stressed that registration carries no risk, noting that “even if someone registers abroad but cannot vote there, their name automatically appears on the electoral lists inside Lebanon.”

Gemayel also pointed to what he described as “significant political shifts” among several Christian parties, including the Free Patriotic Movement and Marada Movement, saying they have increasingly adopted positions favoring exclusive state control over weapons. He called the trend “a positive step” toward a unified national stance on sovereignty.

On economic policy, Gemayel argued that meaningful reform must begin with bringing Lebanon’s massive informal economy under state control.

“More than 50% of Lebanon’s economic activity is unregulated, untaxed and outside official budgets,” he said. “How can we design a fair tax policy when half the money is outside the system?”

He said this imbalance punishes law-abiding citizens while rewarding those who evade oversight. “This is not economic justice,” he said. “It is a structural flaw that must be fixed immediately.”

Speakers at the event said some pro-Hezbollah parties are trying to hinder diaspora voting by claiming they cannot campaign in countries such as the United States or Canada.

“This is an obvious contradiction,” participants said, noting that the Lebanese opposition itself faces intimidation and restrictions in areas controlled by those same parties inside Lebanon.

They called for coordinated efforts between expatriate groups and the World Lebanese Cultural Union to boost registration rates, saying diaspora voting is “a national battle, not a partisan one.”

Several attendees also pointed to deep mistrust in the Lebanese state and said restoring confidence will require concrete actions, not promises. They noted that many expatriates who have built new lives abroad need real assurance that their vote will matter.

Concerns about the future of Lebanon’s education system were also raised, with speakers warning of attempts to impose ideologically driven curricula that undermine neutrality and critical thinking.

Some schools, they said, have adopted non-national programs while independent educational institutions are increasingly sidelined, threatening equal opportunity and overall educational quality. Participants called for a national effort to “protect education from politicization.”