After Saudi Arabia Bahrain asks the ambassador of Beirut to leave its lands, and Mikati calls on Qardahi to “appreciate” the national interest

Saudi Arabia summoned its ambassador to Lebanon in protest against the statements of the Lebanese Minister of Information, George Kordahi, in which he defended the Houthis. Riyadh and Manama also asked the Lebanese ambassador to leave the country within the next 48 hours, while the Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati called on Kordahi to appreciate the national interest.

And the Saudi Press Agency said - this evening, Friday - that the Kingdom's government decided to summon the Saudi ambassador in Beirut for consultation, and asked the Lebanese ambassador to leave the country within 48 hours, and also announced stopping all Lebanese imports to the Kingdom, in the context of the crisis raised by the statements of the Lebanese Minister of Information. George Kordahi.

Minister Qardahi clarifies his position and Mikati rejects his statements

The agency stated that the minister's statements represented "a new episode of reprehensible and rejected positions issued by Lebanese officials towards the Kingdom and its policies, in addition to the slanderous statements and the reversal of facts."

It also pointed out that "Lebanon did not take the measures demanded by the Kingdom to stop the export of the scourge of drugs from Lebanon through Lebanese exports to the Kingdom," especially in light of Hezbollah's control of all ports, according to the Saudi Agency.

The Saudi government expressed its regret "for the outcome of relations with the Lebanese Republic, due to the Lebanese authorities' ignoring of the facts and their continued failure to take corrective measures that ensure the observance of the relations that the Kingdom has long been keen on."

On the other hand, the Bahrain News Agency said that the Bahraini Ministry of Foreign Affairs asked the Lebanese ambassador to leave the country within 48 hours, against the background of a series of "rejected and offensive" statements and stances issued by Lebanese officials recently, according to the agency.

Appreciating the interest of the country

On the other hand, a statement issued by the Presidency of the Lebanese Government said, "Prime Minister Najib Mikati asked Minister of Information George Kordahi, in a call, to assess the national interest and take the appropriate decision to reform Lebanon's Arab relations."

The statement added that the call came after consultations with Lebanese President Michel Aoun.

Mikati had expressed his regret at the Saudi decision to withdraw its ambassador in Beirut and its request to leave the Lebanese ambassador, expressing his hope that Riyadh would reconsider it, and stressed his strong rejection of everything that harms brotherly relations with Saudi Arabia.

Mikati appealed to Arab leaders to work and help overcome this crisis in order to preserve Arab cohesion.

In turn, the Lebanese Foreign Minister, Abdullah Bouhabib, said that he will, in coordination with the presidents of the republic and government, manage a cell whose mission is to heal the rift and overcome the dispute with Saudi Arabia.

He added that what is happening with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states is a problem, not a crisis, and it can be overcome through dialogue, expressing his country's keenness to communicate with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states to restore the best relations.

Rolling crisis

For his part, the head of the Lebanese Forces Party, Samir Geagea, said that there is a very big rolling crisis between the Gulf countries and the Lebanese government.

He added that the current majority disrupted the government at the beginning of its journey, but to go beyond that and disrupt all Lebanon's relations with its Arab surroundings, this is a major tragedy, as he put it.

In a statement, Geagea indicated that the government majority is called to take a quick and decisive decision to spare the Lebanese people more tragedies.

The leader of the Future Movement, Saad Hariri, said that "the responsibility lies first and foremost with Hezbollah, which spreads hostility to the Arabs and the Gulf states."

Hariri added that Lebanon's sovereignty will not be upheld by aggression against the sovereignty of Arab countries and exposing their interests to dangers imported from Iran.

The head of the Lebanese Progressive Socialist Party, Walid Jumblatt, also called for the dismissal of Information Minister George Kordahi.

And he considered in a tweet on Twitter that Qardahi's stay would destroy Lebanon's relations with the Arab Gulf states.

Commenting on the Saudi decision to summon the Kingdom's ambassador in Beirut, and the departure of the Lebanese ambassador in Riyadh, Jumblatt said, "Enough of the disasters," wondering, "How long will stupidity, conspiracy, and agents escalate into Lebanese domestic and foreign policy?", as he put it.

Other actions

The Saudi government said that it will take a number of other measures to achieve its goals, as it affirmed "the foregoing regarding preventing citizens from traveling to Lebanon", in the interest of their safety "in light of the increasing instability of the security situation in Lebanon."

At the same time, she affirmed her concern for the Lebanese residing in the Kingdom, and that she "does not consider what is issued by the Lebanese authorities an expression of the positions of the Lebanese community residing in the Kingdom and dear to the Saudi people."

Commenting on the kingdom's decisions, Lebanese politician Walid Jumblatt called for the dismissal of Information Minister George Kordahi, saying that it would "destroy Lebanon's relations with the Gulf states."

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the UAE had summoned the ambassadors of Lebanon to them; To hand them a note of protest against the statements made by the Lebanese Minister of Information regarding the war in Yemen.

Qardahi described the war in Yemen as absurd, and said that it must stop, and saw that what the Houthis are doing is self-defense, in statements he made in an episode of the "Parliament of the People" program broadcast last Monday.

In the wake of the controversy sparked by his statements, Qardahi said that no one should dictate to the Lebanese what to do about whether or not a minister remains in the government, adding that he is part of an integrated government and cannot take a decision to resign on his own.

Qardahi indicated that his interview, which sparked controversy, was filmed on August 5, weeks before his appointment as a minister, stressing that his positions in that interview towards Syria, Palestine and the Gulf are personal opinions, and do not bind the government.

He said that he did not intend "in any way to offend the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia or the Emirates, whose leadership and people I have so much love and loyalty to."

As for the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it said that the words issued by Qardahi do not reflect the position of the Lebanese government that adheres to brotherly ties with the Arab countries.

However, the Lebanese Hezbollah condemned - yesterday, Thursday, in a statement - what it described as the "unjust" campaign led by Saudi Arabia, the UAE and the Gulf Cooperation Council against the Minister of Information, George Qardahi, against the background of his positions on the Yemen war.

The party announced its rejection of any call to dismiss Qardahi or push him to resign, considering these calls a blatant attack on Lebanon, according to the statement.