Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel on Sunday hailed the late Patriarch Emeritus Nasrallah Sfeir as an exceptional man who will be greatly missed, saying that the latter had not once compromised his constants and values.

“Patriarch Sfeir was our main resort as a student resistance movement during the Syrian occupation era. He served as a catalyst for the Lebanese people's opposition to the Syrian occupation,” Gemayel told MTV.

“We lost a symbol of a noble and honorable phase in the history of Lebanon,” he said.

“Sfeir will always be a role model to all of us."

“The Patriarch was like a father to me. He was an exceptional person who we are all going to miss,” he said.

“We hope we would rise up to the struggle fought by the late Cardinal in the difficult times, and pledge to remain loyal to his teachings and the political path he had paved during his mandate as patriarch," he affirmed.