Bahrain prepares to reopen its Beirut embassy

BEIRUT — Bahraini ambassador Wahid Mubarak Sayyar told Prime Minister Nawaf Salam that his country was preparing to reopen its Beirut embassy, during a meeting at the Grand Serail on Wednesday.

Based now in Syria, Sayyar said that preparations also include appointing a resident ambassador "soon," according to comments cited by the state-run National News Agency. He also reaffirmed "Bahrain's support for Lebanon in its phase of recovery and reconstruction of its institutions."

Salam reportedly emphasized his commitment to "strengthening bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries" and expressed his satisfaction at "seeing Lebanon regain its natural place within the Arab family."

Salam also met with Fahd al-Kaabi, the charge d'affaires for the United Arab Emirates embassy in Beirut, with whom he discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation, investment opportunities, and Emirati support for Lebanon in various sectors.

Several Gulf countries, including Bahrain, recalled their diplomats from Beirut in October 2021 in response to statements by a Lebanese minister criticizing the Saudi military intervention in Yemen. Since 2015, a coalition led by Saudi Arabia, which also includes the UAE and Bahrain, has supported the Yemeni government against Houthi rebels, who are, in turn, supported by Iran.

This coalition's war on Yemen resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people, both through a direct bombing campaign as well as through the creation of a mass famine across the country, according to United Nations' reports. U.N. officials condemned Saudi Arabia's "widespread and systematic" bombing of civilians as war crimes.

The election of President Joseph Aoun and his subsequent appointment of Salam as prime minister marked a determined effort by Beirut to rebuild relations with the Arab countries in the region.