A mass was held at the St. George’s Cathedral in Downtown Beirut marking the tenth anniversary of the assassination of MP Gebran Tueni.

Beirut Greek Orthodox Archbishop Elias Audeh, who celebrated the mass, asked: “Did the martyrs who died for the sake of the country die to see the nation wither away without a president or parliament that legislates for a better life.”

His comments come lamenting the presidential vacuum and the paralysis of the state’s institutions.

“Turning a blind eye on the truth and submission are big mistakes. Everyone must come to the rescue of the country,” he added.

Tueni, the former editor and publisher of An Nahar newspaper, was assassinated in a car bomb blast in Mkalles on Dec. 12, 2005.

He was among a series of anti-Syrian officials who were assassinated or escaped murder in the aftermath of the Feb. 2005 killing of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.