France's Macron says not offering Hariri exile

BONN, Germany - 15 November 2017: President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday said his invitation on Wednesday to Lebanon's prime minister Saad al-Hariri to come to France was not an offer of political exile.

"No, not at all," Macron told reporters in Bonn when asked if he was handing Hariri exile. "I hope that Lebanon will be stable, and that political choices should be in accordance with institutional rule."

"We need a strong Lebanon with her territorial integrity respected. We need leaders who are free to make their own choices and speak freely."