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George Kordahi, until this Friday Lebanese Minister of Information, had made comments against the military campaign of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. His comments triggered a diplomatic crisis with the Gulf States and, to seek a solution to the disputes, he resigned. Lebanon, going through a serious economic crisis, is trying to resolve the dispute with Saudi Arabia through the intervention of French President Emmanuel Macron.
In Lebanon, George Kordahi is no longer the Minister of Information. The former television host turned politician announced his resignation on Friday, specifying that Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati told him earlier this week that his resignation was a prerequisite for French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Saudi Arabia. in an attempt to ease the crisis between Lebanon and the kingdom.
“I understood from Mikati that the French want my resignation to come before his (Macron’s) visit,” Kordahi told a press conference.
This Friday, the French president began a tour of the Gulf that will take him to visit the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar and Saudi Arabia, and to address issues such as cooperation in the fight against terrorism, stability in the region and exchanges economic.
“I will not accept being used as a motive to harm Lebanon and our Lebanese brothers in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries,” Kordahi proclaimed at the same press conference.
“The interests of my country, my people and my supporters are above my personal interest. Lebanon is more important than George Kordahi, and Lebanese interests are more important than a ministerial role,” he said.
A lightning mandate, sentenced by comments on the war in Yemen
The now former Minister of Information was in office for less than three months, after being appointed in September as one of the members of the new Mikati government.
A few weeks later, videos of an interview he had given a month before his appointment began circulating on the Internet, in which he claimed that Houthi rebels in Yemen, aligned with Iran, “are defending themselves against external aggression.”
Kordahi also called the conflict in that country “useless” and called for an end to this war that has lasted more than six years and that led to the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.
But these statements provoked the ire of Saudi Arabia and its allies in the region, who were quick to react, withdrawing their ambassadors from Beirut and expelling Lebanese envoys from their countries. Bahrain and the UAE also asked their citizens to leave Lebanon.
But the climb didn’t stop there. In addition to diplomatic measures, Saudi Arabia launched economic sanctions and banned all Lebanese imports into its territory.
“I never wanted to insult anyone with my comments about the war in Yemen” Kordahi defended on Friday.
The former official also condemned what he described as an “indiscriminate campaign” against him by various Lebanese political leaders and media that, according to him, have distorted his observations.
“They presented what I said as a crime against Saudi Arabia,” Kordahi lamented.
An almost forced resignation given the economic situation of the country
The former presenter had repeatedly refused to resign, but last month Mikati had tacitly asked him to step down.
“I ask the Information Minister to listen to his conscience, take the position he must take and give priority to national interests,” the prime minister had said in a speech.
But the Iranian-backed Hezbollah party and Kordahi’s formation, the Marada Movement, backed him. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah criticized Saudi Arabia for infringing on Lebanese sovereignty and trying to fuel the conflict in the country.
For a long time, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries were Lebanon’s political allies and economic backers. But according to experts, in recent years, they have decided to turn their backs on the country because of the growing political influence of Hezbollah and its allies in the Lebanese government.
Lebanon, shaken by an economic crisis that has plunged more than half its population into poverty, cannot afford to upset the Gulf nations and hopes to repair relations.
With Reuters and local media
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