10-30-2021, 09:11 PM
*** 31-Oct-21 World View -- Saudi Arabia expels Lebanon ambassador over Iran's increasing influence
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
****
**** Saudi Arabia expels Lebanon ambassador over Iran's increasing influence
****
![[Image: g211030b.jpg]](http://Media.GenerationalDynamics.com/ww2010/g211030b.jpg)
Christian protesters block the streets in Beirut (Al-Jazeera)
Lebanon continues to face one disaster after another, following a
historic port implosion last year and an eight-hour gun battle in
Beirut earlier this month. Lebanon now faces a major diplomatic and
trade crisis with Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries.
Saudi Arabia recalled its ambassador to Lebanon on Friday for
consultations, and requested the departure of Lebanon's Saudi envoy by
Monday. Saudi Arabia futhermore halted all imports of all products
from Lebanon. Bahrain followed Saudi Arabia in solidarity, and Kuwait
and the United Arab Emirates did the same.
The action was triggered by the airing last week of an August 5
interview in which Lebanon's Information Minister George Kordahi made
harsh criticisms of the Saudi Arabia led coalition in the war in Yemen
against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels. In the interview, Kordahi that
the Houthi rebels were "defending themselves ... against an external
aggression," and that "homes, villages, funerals and weddings were
being bombed" by the coalition.
Last week, Kordahi told local reporters on Wednesday that he refused
to apologize and that the interview was his "personal opinion," since
he was still a private citizen at the time. He said, "I did not wrong
anyone. I did not attack anyone. Why should I apologize? I stated my
position with love as a human who feels Arab suffering."
Well, the Saudis apparently did not feel the love, as the Saudis
withdrew their ambassador shortly thereafter.
Saudi Arabia has considered Lebanon a close ally for decades, but
relations have soured as Hezbollah has gained power in Lebanon.
Hezbollah is recognized as a Shia terrorist group by the West and by
the Arab League. Saudi Arabia and Lebanon got along well for years,
as long they could agree that Israel was the bad guy. But things
started deteriorating in 2011 when Syria's Shia/Alawite president
Bashar al-Assad started attacking innocent Sunni protesters, and and
Hezbollah's militias began fighting in Syria in support of al-Assad's
army. Relations between Lebanon and Saudi further eroded in 2020,
when the Abraham Accords were signed during the Trump administration.
A particularly dramatic incident occurred in 2017, when Saad Hariri,
the prime minister of Lebanon, made a seemingly routine trip to Saudi
Arabia, but then shocked everyone by resigning as prime minister while
there, giving as a reason the fear that Iran and Hezbollah would
assassinate him. Hariri's father, Rafiq Hariri, was killed in 2005 by
a massive explosion in Beirut
that
was blamed on Syria and Hezbollah. (See "5-Nov-17 World View -- Saad Hariri shocks Lebanon by resigning as PM while in Saudi Arabia"
)
So George Kordahi's harsh criticism of Saudi Arabia's role in Yemen
may have been stated "with love," but now that he is Lebanon's
Information Minister, he is under increasing pressure to resign.
****
**** Judge Tarek Bitar the center of the Beirut's October 14 gun battle
****
The new actions by Saudi Arabia followed a six hour gun battle in
downtown Beirut, Lebanon's capital city, on October 14. Hezbollah
supporters were marching peacefully to protest the investigation of
last year's port explosion, which was led by Judge Tarek Bitar. The
gun battle was between Hezbollah supporters and supporters of Samir
Geagea, who is leader of the Lebanese Forces party (which is a
political party, not the Lebanon army). Each side accuses the other
of firing the first shot, and seven people were killed, with dozens
injured.
At the center of all this is Judge Tarek Bitar, who has been described
as incorruptible, and who is conducting the investigation into who is
responsible for the Beirut port explosion last year. On Tuesday,
August 4, 2020, a catastrophic explosion in the Beirut seaport leveled
thousands of homes, killed and injured thousands of people, and left
300,000 people homeless. It's considered by many to be the biggest
non-nuclear explosion in history. (See "22-Aug-20 World View -- Hezbollah implicated in catastrophic Beirut Lebanon explosion"
)
Lebanon is a country where corruption runs deep and politicians are
assassinated, all with impunity. Meanwhile, there is no regular
electricity or water or garbage collection, the value of the currency
has fallen 90%, and the politicians appear to be doing very well. The
ordinary people of Lebanon are sick and tired of the impunity, and
want someone to be named responsible for the port blast. It's widely
believed that Hezbollah is responsible, though the crime may be great
enough to enmesh other politicians as well. The reason that Hezbollah
supporters were marching on October 14 is that they were demanding
that Judge Bitar's investigation be ended, leaving no one to take the
blame for the port blast.
Lebanon is hoping for aid from the international community before the
economy collapses completely. Aid is being blocked, pending reforms
and democratization of Lebanon's government, and Bitar's investigation
has been seen by the international community as the best hope for
reform. Lebanon's politicians were particularly hoping for support
from the Arab nations, but that now seems impossible.
The October 14 gun battle has further paralyzed Lebanon's government.
Hezbollah is refusing to allow any cabinet meetings to occur unless
Judge Bitar's investigation is permanently ended. Lebanon's
government was disastrously weak before, but now can't even hold a
meeting.
Hezbollah's leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah is blaming Samir Geagea and
the Lebanese Forces party with being responsible for the October 14
shootout, and is accusing Saudi Arabia of providing support and
perhaps instigating the attack on Hezbollah protesters. This
infuriated the Saudis, and after the airing of George Kordahi's
interview, and his harsh criticisms of the Saudi Arabia led coalition
in the war in Yemen, the Saudis withdrew their ambassador from
Lebanon.
Sources:
Related Articles:
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia,
Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait,
George Kordahi, Yemen, Houthis, Iran,
Hezbollah, Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, Syria,
Saad Hariri, Rafiq Hariri,
Tarek Bitar, Beirut, Samir Geagea, Lebanese Forces
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
- Saudi Arabia expels Lebanon ambassador over Iran's increasing influence
- Judge Tarek Bitar the center of the Beirut's October 14 gun battle
****
**** Saudi Arabia expels Lebanon ambassador over Iran's increasing influence
****
Christian protesters block the streets in Beirut (Al-Jazeera)
Lebanon continues to face one disaster after another, following a
historic port implosion last year and an eight-hour gun battle in
Beirut earlier this month. Lebanon now faces a major diplomatic and
trade crisis with Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries.
Saudi Arabia recalled its ambassador to Lebanon on Friday for
consultations, and requested the departure of Lebanon's Saudi envoy by
Monday. Saudi Arabia futhermore halted all imports of all products
from Lebanon. Bahrain followed Saudi Arabia in solidarity, and Kuwait
and the United Arab Emirates did the same.
The action was triggered by the airing last week of an August 5
interview in which Lebanon's Information Minister George Kordahi made
harsh criticisms of the Saudi Arabia led coalition in the war in Yemen
against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels. In the interview, Kordahi that
the Houthi rebels were "defending themselves ... against an external
aggression," and that "homes, villages, funerals and weddings were
being bombed" by the coalition.
Last week, Kordahi told local reporters on Wednesday that he refused
to apologize and that the interview was his "personal opinion," since
he was still a private citizen at the time. He said, "I did not wrong
anyone. I did not attack anyone. Why should I apologize? I stated my
position with love as a human who feels Arab suffering."
Well, the Saudis apparently did not feel the love, as the Saudis
withdrew their ambassador shortly thereafter.
Saudi Arabia has considered Lebanon a close ally for decades, but
relations have soured as Hezbollah has gained power in Lebanon.
Hezbollah is recognized as a Shia terrorist group by the West and by
the Arab League. Saudi Arabia and Lebanon got along well for years,
as long they could agree that Israel was the bad guy. But things
started deteriorating in 2011 when Syria's Shia/Alawite president
Bashar al-Assad started attacking innocent Sunni protesters, and and
Hezbollah's militias began fighting in Syria in support of al-Assad's
army. Relations between Lebanon and Saudi further eroded in 2020,
when the Abraham Accords were signed during the Trump administration.
A particularly dramatic incident occurred in 2017, when Saad Hariri,
the prime minister of Lebanon, made a seemingly routine trip to Saudi
Arabia, but then shocked everyone by resigning as prime minister while
there, giving as a reason the fear that Iran and Hezbollah would
assassinate him. Hariri's father, Rafiq Hariri, was killed in 2005 by
a massive explosion in Beirut
that
was blamed on Syria and Hezbollah. (See "5-Nov-17 World View -- Saad Hariri shocks Lebanon by resigning as PM while in Saudi Arabia"
)
So George Kordahi's harsh criticism of Saudi Arabia's role in Yemen
may have been stated "with love," but now that he is Lebanon's
Information Minister, he is under increasing pressure to resign.
****
**** Judge Tarek Bitar the center of the Beirut's October 14 gun battle
****
The new actions by Saudi Arabia followed a six hour gun battle in
downtown Beirut, Lebanon's capital city, on October 14. Hezbollah
supporters were marching peacefully to protest the investigation of
last year's port explosion, which was led by Judge Tarek Bitar. The
gun battle was between Hezbollah supporters and supporters of Samir
Geagea, who is leader of the Lebanese Forces party (which is a
political party, not the Lebanon army). Each side accuses the other
of firing the first shot, and seven people were killed, with dozens
injured.
At the center of all this is Judge Tarek Bitar, who has been described
as incorruptible, and who is conducting the investigation into who is
responsible for the Beirut port explosion last year. On Tuesday,
August 4, 2020, a catastrophic explosion in the Beirut seaport leveled
thousands of homes, killed and injured thousands of people, and left
300,000 people homeless. It's considered by many to be the biggest
non-nuclear explosion in history. (See "22-Aug-20 World View -- Hezbollah implicated in catastrophic Beirut Lebanon explosion"
)
Lebanon is a country where corruption runs deep and politicians are
assassinated, all with impunity. Meanwhile, there is no regular
electricity or water or garbage collection, the value of the currency
has fallen 90%, and the politicians appear to be doing very well. The
ordinary people of Lebanon are sick and tired of the impunity, and
want someone to be named responsible for the port blast. It's widely
believed that Hezbollah is responsible, though the crime may be great
enough to enmesh other politicians as well. The reason that Hezbollah
supporters were marching on October 14 is that they were demanding
that Judge Bitar's investigation be ended, leaving no one to take the
blame for the port blast.
Lebanon is hoping for aid from the international community before the
economy collapses completely. Aid is being blocked, pending reforms
and democratization of Lebanon's government, and Bitar's investigation
has been seen by the international community as the best hope for
reform. Lebanon's politicians were particularly hoping for support
from the Arab nations, but that now seems impossible.
The October 14 gun battle has further paralyzed Lebanon's government.
Hezbollah is refusing to allow any cabinet meetings to occur unless
Judge Bitar's investigation is permanently ended. Lebanon's
government was disastrously weak before, but now can't even hold a
meeting.
Hezbollah's leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah is blaming Samir Geagea and
the Lebanese Forces party with being responsible for the October 14
shootout, and is accusing Saudi Arabia of providing support and
perhaps instigating the attack on Hezbollah protesters. This
infuriated the Saudis, and after the airing of George Kordahi's
interview, and his harsh criticisms of the Saudi Arabia led coalition
in the war in Yemen, the Saudis withdrew their ambassador from
Lebanon.
Sources:
- Saudi-Lebanon diplomatic crisis worsens as envoy expelled, imports banned (Reuters, 29-Oct-2021)
- Saudi Arabia expels Lebanon ambassador amid Yemen row (BBC, 30-Oct-2021)
- Saudi Arabia, Bahrain expel Lebanese ambassadors (Al-Jazeera, 29-Oct-2021)
- Lebanon: Gulf diplomatic crisis mounts over minister's Yemen war comments (Mideast Eye, 30-Oct-2021)
- Saudi Arabia expels Lebanese Ambassador, bans all imports from Lebanon (Saudi Gazette, 30-Oct-2021)
- Saudi Arabia issues calming statement as Lebanese tensions rise over port explosion case (Arab News, 27-Oct-2021)
- Saudi Arabia recalls envoy to Lebanon over 'insulting' remarks on Yemen war (France24, 29-Oct-2021)
- Saudi Arabia expels Lebanese ambassador, cuts imports over Yemen war comments (Times of Israel, 29-Oct-2021)
- Saudi Arabia orders Lebanon envoy to leave, recalls its ambassador to country (Arab News, 29-Oct-2021)
- Kuwait, UAE join Saudi Arabia with measures against Lebanon (AP, 30-Oct-2021)
- Tarek Bitar, Lebanon's judge with a grudge (France24, 14-Oct-2021)
- Beirut blast probe again interrupted as interrogation of ex-PM halted - source (Reuters, 28-Oct-2021)
- Samir Geagea / Lebanese Forces supporters protest party leader’s summoning (Al-Jazeera, 27-Oct-2021)
Related Articles:
- Hezbollah implicated in catastrophic Beirut Lebanon explosion (22-Aug-2020)
- Violence surges in street protests in Lebanon as economy collapses (19-Jan-2020)
- Massive anti-government street protests paralyze Lebanon (21-Oct-2019)
- Anti-Iran, anti-government protests spread across Iraq (03-Nov-2019)
- Riots in Iraq's Basra evoke fault lines of 1980s Iran-Iraq war (09-Sep-2018)
- Saad Hariri shocks Lebanon by resigning as PM while in Saudi Arabia (05-Nov-2017)
- Arab League brands Lebanon's Hezbollah a terrorist organization (12-Mar-2016)
- Paralyzed Lebanon decides to export its garbage to Europe (24-Dec-2015)
- Iraqi Sunnis are turning against al-Qaeda in Iraq (01-Apr-2007)
- Massive Beirut explosion killing Rafiq Hariri puts Lebanon into state of shock (16-Feb-2005)
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia,
Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait,
George Kordahi, Yemen, Houthis, Iran,
Hezbollah, Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah, Syria,
Saad Hariri, Rafiq Hariri,
Tarek Bitar, Beirut, Samir Geagea, Lebanese Forces
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
