Maronite Patriarch Mar Bechara Boutros al-Rahi affirmed that the Lebanese have paid a heavy price for straying from the National Pact, emphasizing that Lebanon can only fulfill its mission through positive neutrality.

"We celebrate this Mass for the repose of the souls of the victims, and we pray to God to grant us peace. The assassination of Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah has reopened wounds from the war among the Lebanese. We are all losers in this conflict, and thus negotiations are essential,"al-Rahi said in his Sunday's sermon.

"The assassination has indeed deepened the wounds, and we hope for the election of a president who will halt the bloodshed and lead peace talks," he added.