The media office of Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Elias Bou Saab, issued the following statement:

"In the wake of the controversy that took place during the joint committees session in the Parliament on Tuesday, Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Elias Bou Saab communicated with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and briefed him on the details of what happened. Immediately after that, Berri initiated contacted Kataeb Party Leader Samy Gemayel, assuring him of his keenness to deal with what happened. Berri also asked Bou Saab to complete his contacts to find a solution that would address the issue quickly.

As a result of these contacts, Bou Saab visited the headquarters of the Kataeb Party in Saifi where he met its leader MP Samy Gemayel, assuring him of his keenness to deal with what happened and agreed with him on the way to deal with the issue.

After that, MP Ali Hassan Khalil called Gemayel apologizing for what he said, especially after the MP Khalil made sure that the provocative speech that was issued against him was not issued by Kataeb Party Leader.

During the call, in which Bou Saab participated, Khalil confirmed his full respect for Gemayel and the Kataeb Party."