Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi meets with President Michel Aoun in October. (Credit: Dalati & Nohra)
BEIRUT — Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi has called on Information Minister George Kurdahi to resign in an interview published on Saturday with the Kuwaiti daily Al Rai.
Here’s what we know:
• In the interview, Mawlawi said, “I called, via the media, for [Kurdahi’s] resignation and said it is necessary, at least, to take this step. As to why he did not resign, it depends on him, his personal position and his will.”
• Mawlawi said he is aligned with Prime Minister Najib Mikati on this issue, saying, “President Mikati’s position to call for Minister Kurdahi to resign is clear and public.” In recent days Mikati has called for the “general interest” to be prioritized over personal considerations, after remarks made by Information Minister George Kurdahi criticizing Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Yemen resurfaced, triggering a rift between Lebanon and several Gulf countries.
• Mawlawi also lamented the cabinet’s inability to convene and take a position on Kurdahi’s resignation. The cabinet has not met since Oct. 12, when ministers could not agree on what position to take on Judge Tarek Bitar’s investigation into the Beirut port explosion.
• At the same time, Mawlawi stressed that all ministers are administering their portfolios and departments, even though the cabinet is not meeting. He denied that the government could collapse as a result of the twofold political crisis facing it, saying, “The government, God willing, is not threatened and will continue, as Lebanon and the Lebanese have no interest in its departure. And President Mikati confirmed it will remain.”
• Regarding the upcoming parliamentary elections, and the calls by the Free Patriotic Movement to reject the March 27 date set by Parliament in favor of the originally scheduled May 8 date, Mawlawi assured Al Rai that the Interior Ministry “Is ready to hold them on their constitutional date — that is, within two months before the term of the current Parliament expires. I assure [the vote] will take place, and its accomplishment will be a success for all.”