Naharnet Newsdesk - Berri Seeks to Stunt Shiite-Sunni Clash on Landmark Visit to Saudi Arabia

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Berri Seeks to Stunt Shiite-Sunni Clash on Landmark Visit to Saudi Arabia

Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri is in Saudi Arabia on a momentous diplomatic crusade that aims to defuse political and sectarian tensions pushing Lebanon into the abyss of a new civil strife.
The trip coincides with cries from the pro-Syria camp for a government change that would strip the March 14 forces of their majority power in Prime Minister Fouad Saniora's government.

This has been widely viewed by Rafik Hariri's political heirs as an attempt to muster enough clout to undermine an impending international tribunal to try the suspected killers of the ex-prime minister, who always was regarded Saudi Arabia's "Golden Boy."

High on Berri's agenda are the tribunal, deteriorating Sunni-Shiite relations, Saudi Arabia's friction with Hizbullah and the fate of the Saniora government to which Saudi Arabia has tacitly pinned its future engagement in Lebanon's post-war reconstruction.

According to An Nahar, Saudi sources said King Abdullah will stress in his talks with Berri "on preserving the Islamic unity and building solid relations among Sunnis and Shiites."

An Arab diplomat told Agence France Presse the visit would also be an opportunity to improve relations between Hizbullah and Saudi Arabia which deteriorated during the month-long war in July and August.

Saudi official media angered the group in July by describing as "adventurism" the deadly cross-border raid in which Hizbullah seized two Israeli soldiers drawing the devastating onslaught on Lebanon.

Lebanese sources in Riyadh said that Berri will also discuss with the king "the type of assistance that Lebanon needs from the kingdom, the improvement of relations with Syria and the deteriorating internal situation."

Berri, a Shiite, arrived in the kingdom aboard a private plane made available by King Abdullah. This was a clear sign of commitment to defusing local tensions, which recently saw Gen. Michel Aoun promising a political onslaught until the ouster of Saniora – condoning a pro-Syrian, pro-Hizbullah position that has sent shockwaves not only through the Sunni community, but also spread rapidly among the Christians, especially the Maronite hierarchy.

On Wednesday, the Council of Maronite Bishops said that demands for the government's resignation could have "clandestine motives" to hamper an international tribunal to try Hariri's suspected assassins.

Berri's trip reportedly was arranged by Beirut MP Saad Hariri, whose standing in the kingdom almost matched his slain father's. But observers in Beirut have noted that while the speaker's effort might well ease tensions for while, the real test would be in the ability of the Saudis to work out some compromise with Iran over the future of Hizbullah.

Beirut, 08 Oct 06, 07:30


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