Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri said Hezbollah head Hassan Nasrallah's comments endangered Lebanon. (Credit: AFP)
BEIRUT— Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who has been in the United Arab Emirates for months after facing serious setbacks on the Lebanese political scene, criticized Tuesday remarks made by Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah targeting Saudi Arabia. In a tweet, Hariri said Saudi Arabia is not a threat to Lebanon.
Here’s what we know:
• During a memorial for Iranian General Qassem Soleimani yesterday, Hezbollah's number one accused the kingdom of being a terrorist state and of contributing to the spread of the Islamic State in the Middle East.
• Nasrallah also accused Saudi Arabia of “holding hostage the Lebanese living in the Gulf.”
• Hariri tweeted addressing these comments, saying, “Your insistence on antagonizing Saudi Arabia and its leadership is a continuous form of adventurism in Lebanon, its role and the interests of its children. Saudi Arabia has not threatened the state of Lebanon with its workers and residents for decades.”
• “Everyone knows that history will not be merciful to a party [Hezbollah] that sells its Arabism and the stability of its homeland and the interests of its people in exchange for a handful of partnerships in the wars of the region,” Hariri’s tweet continued.
• Saudi Arabia and all the Gulf countries welcomed the Lebanese and ensured them decent jobs and living conditions, Hariri wrote. “The one who threatens the Lebanese and their living conditions, stability and progress is the one who wants to build a Lebanese state dependent on Iran and its extensions in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Lebanon.”
• Former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora also considered Nasrallah's comments to be “a crime against the Lebanese.”
• “Hassan Nasrallah's statements against Saudi Arabia, in the current Arab and Lebanese circumstances, constitute a qualified crime against Lebanon and the Lebanese,” said Siniora in a statement issued on Tuesday.
• Reacting to Nasrallah’s statement, Lebanese President Michel Aoun reaffirmed on Tuesday his willingness to ensure and maintain good relations with Saudi Arabia. This position is in line with Prime Minister Najib Mikati, who said on Monday that Hassan Nasrallah's remarks “do not represent the position of the Lebanese government.”