French President Macron meets Fayrouz over a cup of coffee ... Monday
Among a group of political rivalries over everything, French President Emmanuel Macron chose to start his visit to Lebanon by meeting with a national symbol whose name the Lebanese meet and do not disperse and embody Fairuz.
The Elysee Palace included the name of the Lebanese artist at the top of the French President's program during his second visit to Beirut in less than a month.
Macron wrote on his show the phrase "A date over a cup of coffee with Fayrouz in Antelias on Monday evening."
Macron will return on Monday, and on his agenda is a program crowded with political meetings in an attempt to extricate the country from the political deadlock that prevents the formation of an "important government" that the Elysee had presented in a paper distributed to Lebanese politicians.
The French president concluded a visit to Beirut on August 7 and wrote on Twitter the phrase "I love you, Lebanon," which is the title of a famous song by Fayrouz that accompanied the Lebanese during the 15 years of the civil war.
Macron will visit the Lebanese artist upon his arrival on Monday evening at her home in Rabieh, near Antelias, north of Beirut, away from the media lenses.
Fairouz has strong friendship with the French state, which was strengthened in 1975 when she appeared for the first time on French television as part of the program (Special Matteo) presented by her friend, the French artist Mireille Mathieu, and there was a song (My Love in the Summer).
The relationship took a deeper form during the Lebanese war when Fairouz gave a huge party at the Olympics in Paris in 1979 and sang (Paris, Oh Flower of Freedom).
And the last part of the song says (Oh France, what do you tell your family about my wounded country / about my country that is crowned with danger and wind / Our story from the beginning of time / Lebanon will be hurt, Lebanon will be destroyed / They say he died and he will not die / And he returns from Hajaru above homes / And Tire, Sidon and Beirut are decorated).
Fayrouz received the highest French honors, including the Commander of Arts and Letters from the late French President Francois Mitterrand in 1988, and the Knight Legion of Honor from the late President Jacques Chirac in 1998.
No comment was issued from Fairuz's office in Lebanon or from her daughter, director Rima Rahbani. A number of artists and media professionals interacted with the announcement of the French President's meeting with Fayrouz.
The Lebanese artist Melhem Zein considered that the French president "will receive the Medal of Honor of the rank of Fairouz through this meeting because the meeting with her will be recorded in his record and the public opinion will remember him more than any other political meeting."
Zain added, "I do not think that this historic opportunity is repeated for anyone, even senior leaders. We all know that the story of Fairouz and the closed doors is a long story, and this is her secret that we loved as much as we loved her art .. Of course we will envy Macron for this opportunity, and we consider that he chose the right path, it is his will." For him to tell us this is the Lebanon we want ... in the spotless image of Fairuz, which made glory. "