Maronite Catholic Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir has warned that the nation of Lebanon is close to collapse, the AsiaNews service reports.

As Lebanon marked the 30th anniversary of the outbreak of a devastating civil war, Cardinal Sfeir described his country as a land "fragmented, being without a president, run by an amputated government, and with a parliament that doesn't meet."

The Maronite patriarch, the most influential Christian leader in Lebanon, has been a persistent critic of Syrian influence over the country's government. He has frequently called for help from the international community, while urging the people of Lebanon to take action to protect their national identity.

[For a more detailed story see the AsiaNews web site.]