A Kataeb delegation, headed by the party leader Samy Gemayel, offered condolences over the passing of Patriarch Emeritus Nasrallah Sfeir in Bkirki on Tuesday.

“Patriarch Sfeir is an icon to us because he was always a father to the Kataeb party,” Gemayel said following the visit.

“He was a father to those who struggled and resisted in the face of the Syrian occupation during the tutelage era. Witnessing to his struggle, morals and charisma which played a key role in accomplishing Lebanon’s second independence is the least we can do today,” Gemayel noted.

“He was an important idol and a haven that we resorted to during difficult times,” he stressed.

"We will keep on seeking to achieve the principles that Cardinal Sfeir taught us. We promise his beatitude to remain loyal to the cause he had always advocated,” he affirmed

“We promise him to kim on defending the constants that had set out and to always follow in his footsteps by refusing to compromise, speaking the truth and sacrificing ourselves for the sake of Lebanon," Gemayel plegded.

"We shall continue our struggle and work on fulfilling the principles based on which Lebanon was founded."

The Kataeb leader called on the Kataeb partisans and the Lebanese to take part in bidding the Patriarch farewell starting tomorrow and attend the funeral on Thursday.