Miss Lebanon, Saly Greige, will not lose her title due to her reportedly unwillful inclusion in a selfie taken by Miss Israel, Doron Matalon.
Griege has been trying to convince the folks back home that she is a victim of a defamation campaign put on by Doron Matalon, the cause of which stems from political tension between their warring countries.
Miss Lebanon took to Facebook to explain the selfie to those back home, who began to turn on her after Miss Israel posted the selfie to Instagram.
Her explanation was this:
“From the first day I arrived at the Miss Universe pageant I was very careful not to take any pictures with Miss Israel, who tried repeatedly to take pictures with me. While I was preparing with Miss Slovenia and Miss Japan to get our photograph taken, Miss Israel jumped in and took a selfie with her phone and posted it on social media.”
Miss Lebanon added, “This is what happened. I hope you continue supporting me.”
The government of Lebanon released a statement amid fears that Greige might be stripped of her title for her brief interaction with their rival’s beauty queen. There has been no major conflict between the two countries, but high political tensions remain. So much so, that in Lebanon it is actually illegal to have any communication with an Israeli.
The statement about Miss Lebanon’s fate said, “According to the information we obtained, Miss Lebanon did not have bad intentions that necessitates her being stripped of her title or punishment.”
That is surely a relief to Saly Greige, but after accusations made recently that Doron Matlon had been “chasing down” Miss Lebanon for days to get a photo with her for the sole purpose of causing trouble, Matalon is just sad.
She said, “It doesn’t surprise me, but it still makes me sad. Too bad you can not put the hostility out of the game, only for three weeks of an experience of a lifetime that we can meet girls from around the world and also from the neighboring country.”
What do you think of the political tensions between Israel and Lebanon causing such an issue between these two beauty queens who are just trying to enjoy an amazing life experience?