Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor received Major General Ashraf Rifi, Lebanon’s former Minister of Justice and Director General of the Lebanese Internal Security Forces from 2005 to 2013. General Rifi paid a courtesy call to Al Habtoor. It was the first meeting between Al Habtoor and Rifi.
In May 2016, General Rafi emerged as the new Sunni leader in Lebanon, sealing victory for his party ‘Tripoli’s Choice’ in the Tripoli municipal elections and ousting the coalition of Lebanon’s former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who has been traditionally popular in the northern city.
Al Habtoor congratulated General Rifi on his victory. “It is a pleasure meeting General Rifi in person, I wish him all the best. We support every man that fights for the interests of the Lebanese people without differentiation, who prides himself on being an Arab patriot and who recognizes that Lebanon is an Arab country. The election results in Tripoli show that Lebanese citizens are increasingly disappointed with leaders who failed to translate words into actions.”