BEIRUT: Sharp differences emerged Friday during a meeting between a Hezbollah delegation and Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai after the party said it was adamant on backing MP Michel Aoun for the presidency, rejecting any alternative candidate, according to Bkirki sources.

The Hezbollah delegation, led by the party’s Political Council chief Sayyed Ibrahim Amin al-Sayyed, visited Bkirki, the Maronite patriarch’s seat, north of Beirut, to congratulate Rai on Christmas.