MP Ashraf Rifi prays alongside Saudi ambassador Walid Boukhari in Tripoli, on Feb. 22, 2026. (Photo provided by Ashraf Rifi)
Tripoli remains at the center of political attention. Two weeks after the deadly collapse of a residential building that killed 14 people and injured several others, the capital of northern Lebanon hosted Saudi Ambassador Walid Boukhari on Sunday.During his visit, Boukhari held a series of meetings with some of the city’s leading Sunni figures. The timing of the trip was far from coincidental. The Saudi envoy arrived in what is widely seen as the country’s largest Sunni stronghold just one week after the latest speech by Future Movement leader Saad Hariri, whose relationship with the kingdom has not been at its best.The move appeared to signal Riyadh’s intent to reassert itself as the primary political reference point for Lebanon’s Sunni community ahead of parliamentary elections. More on this Vote delay against Taif: Parliamentary...
Tripoli remains at the center of political attention. Two weeks after the deadly collapse of a residential building that killed 14 people and injured several others, the capital of northern Lebanon hosted Saudi Ambassador Walid Boukhari on Sunday.During his visit, Boukhari held a series of meetings with some of the city’s leading Sunni figures. The timing of the trip was far from coincidental. The Saudi envoy arrived in what is widely seen as the country’s largest Sunni stronghold just one week after the latest speech by Future Movement leader Saad Hariri, whose relationship with the kingdom has not been at its best.The move appeared to signal Riyadh’s intent to reassert itself as the primary political reference point for Lebanon’s Sunni community ahead of parliamentary elections. More on this Vote delay against Taif:...
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