Saudis forced ouster of Lebanon PM, Hezbollah says

BEIRUT — The head of Lebanon’s militant group Hezbollah accused Saudi Arabia Sunday of forcing the country’s prime minister to resign after less than a year in his post, as Bahrain ordered its citizens in Lebanon to “leave immediately” and banned travel there.

Prime Minister Saad Hariri stunned Lebanon and its leaders Saturday when he announced his resignation in a televised statement recorded in Saudi Arabia, citing Iranian and Hezbollah meddling in Arab affairs.

Hezbollah Secretary-general Has- san Nasrallah, one of Lebanon’s most powerful figures, said the statement was “dictated and forced upon” Hariri and called for calm as Lebanese leaders consult over next steps.

Hariri’s abrupt resignation has set off anxious chatter about Lebanon’s unstable political configuration and put it at the center of a spiraling regional rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

It has also raised worries that the Gulf kingdom, under the leadership of its increasingly bullish Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, will squeeze Lebanon as a way to get to Iran’s proxy Hezbollah.

“We need to wait and see why Saudi Arabia obligated the head of the government to resign,” said Nasrallah.

Bahrain’s travel ban against Lebanon portends broader prohibitions by Gulf states against the tiny Mediterranean country, which depends on Gulf investment and tourism to keep its economy running.

A harsher package of sanctions would be in line with the Gulf Cooperation Council’s abrupt trade boycott with Qatar over what Gulf states see as Doha’s unfavorably warm ties with Tehran. The boycott has been in place since June. GCC member states warned against travel to Lebanon in 2012 and again in 2016.