SIDON, Lebanon: MP Bahia Hariri expressed her concerns over the conditions of women in Lebanon and the region during a Mother’s Day event Tuesday at her residence in Majdalyoun in Sidon.

“What we need right now is a warm embrace and an answered plea ... to awaken maternal values in us, our families and the people around us in order to protect our children from the tension, and the dark days that threaten their future, our peace and society with angst and uncertainty,” she said.

During the ceremony, Hariri reminded the audience of her late brother Rafik Hariri’s vision of knowledge, employment and progress for his people.

“Where’s the crime in our children learning and working, and being united for the greater good?” she asked. “We want to be united during hard times because the peace of Sidon and Lebanon rests on its mothers.

Give us back our safety. ... Give our children back their hope. ... Give their mothers back their happiness. ... Give us back Lebanon,” Hariri added. The ceremony was held in honor of the wives of employees of BankMed and the Hariri Foundation.