Lebanon's top Christian cleric calls on authorities to defuse crisis with Gulf

FILE PHOTO: Lebanese Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai speaks after meeting with President Michel Aoun at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon July 15, 2020. Dalati Nohra/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

DUBAI (Reuters) - Lebanese Maronite Patriarch Bechara Boutros Al-Rai called on the authorities on Sunday to take a "decisive step" to defuse a crisis with Gulf Arab states over critical comments made by Information Minister George Kordahi about the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen.

Rai, who made the plea to President Michel Aoun and Prime Minister Najib Mikati in his Sunday sermon, did not suggest any specific measure.