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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 31-Oct-2021
31-Oct-21 World View -- Saudi Arabia expels Lebanon ambassador over Iran's increasing influence

Web Log - October, 2021

31-Oct-21 World View -- Saudi Arabia expels Lebanon ambassador over Iran's increasing influence

Judge Tarek Bitar the center of the Beirut's October 14 gun battle

by John J. Xenakis

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)

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:

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(Comments: For reader comments, questions and discussion, see the Generational Dynamics World View News thread of the Generational Dynamics forum. Comments may be posted anonymously.) (31-Oct-2021) Permanent Link
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Judge Tarek Bitar the center of the Beirut's October 14 gun battle

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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 31-Oct-2021
31-Oct-21 World View -- Saudi Arabia expels Lebanon ambassador over Iran's increasing influence