Lebanon’s premier retracts resignation
Reversal widely seen as Saudi defeat
BEIRUT — Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri announced Wednesday that he was putting his resignation on hold to give way for more consultations, nearly three weeks after he unexpectedly announced he was stepping down.
His reversal was quick — a day after his return to Lebanon — and was believed to mark a defeat for Saudi Arabia, which was widely seen as having orchestrated his resignation.
In conciliatory comments from the presidential palace, Hariri said he is putting Lebanon’s interests first and is looking forward to a “real partnership with all political forces to put Lebanon’s higher interest before any other interests.”
He said he presented his resignation to President Michel Aoun at the presidential palace, but then responded to Aoun’s request to take more time for consultations, “hoping it will constitute a serious opening for a responsible dialogue.”
“Our beloved nation needs in this critical period exceptional efforts from everyone to protect it in the face of dangers and challenges,” Hariri said in a statement after meeting with Aoun.
He reiterated the need for Lebanon to remain neutral on regional disputes and conflicts “and all that undermines internal stability and brotherly relations with Arab brothers.”
Hariri’s resignation was seen by many in Lebanon as the latest Saudi foreign policy overreach under its young Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has lately coordinated most of the country’s major decisions.
Under the crown prince, who has the blessing of his father King Salman, Saudi Arabia has taken a much harder line against Iran, which has successfully spread its influence in the Arab region in recent years.
The crown prince, who is also defense minister, has a reputation for being both decisive and impulsive. He has led Saudi Arabia into a nearly 3-year war in Yemen to try and push back Iranian-allied rebels there. A global outcry by aid groups over the tightening of a Saudi blockade in Yemen prompted the Saudis to say they would ease restrictions on urgently needed humanitarian supplies.
In his resignation from Saudi Arabia, Hariri had said he was protesting what he called the meddling in Arab affairs by Iran and its Lebanese ally, Hezbollah. Hezbollah is a partner in the coalition government formed by Hariri a year ago.
The resignation sparked a political and diplomatic crisis as Lebanese officials accused the Gulf kingdom of pressuring the Sunni, Saudi-aligned politician to resign.
Top Lebanese officials accused Saudi Arabia of then detaining him in the kingdom for days. The Lebanese rallied around Hariri, unanimously calling for his return.
Hariri’s reversal appears to be a culmination of nearly three weeks of international pressure for Lebanon’s delicate political balance to hold, though Saudi Arabia likely knew in advance of Hariri’s decision to withdraw his resignation.
It constitutes a win for French President Emmanuel Macron, whose mediation succeeded in getting Hariri out of Saudi Arabia to Paris for few days. He returned to Lebanon on Tuesday night after brief stops in Egypt and Cyprus.
By midday, a few thousand of Hariri supporters converged on his residence in central Beirut amid tight security, in a show of support. Hariri pledged to stay in Lebanon.
“There is nothing more precious than our country,” he told them. “I am staying with you and I will keep going with you to be the first line of defense of Lebanon, its stability and its Arab nature.”