Mansour Labaki's lawyer denied on Thursday that Vatican authorities ruled that the monsignor was innocent of the child abuse accusations against him. "The case is now in the hands of Pope Francis only, and we are sure of Labaki's innocence according to the documents we have,” attorney Antoine Akl said in released statement. "And therefore, we were not surprised by media reports saying he was innocent but we are waiting for Vatican authorities to officially communicate the ruling to us,” he added.

Akl also revealed that he has filed a criminal complaint with Lebanese judicial authorities against all locals and foreigners involved in launching accusations against Labaki. "We gathered irrefutable documents, among them emails, shared by the suspects and used to falsely accuse the monsignor,” he noted. The case is now in the hands of Maronite Patriarch Behsara al-Rahi who will review it with Pope Francis, added the lawyer. [Link]