Hariri Says Resignation 'Positive Shock', Can be Reversed if Dissociation Policy Respected

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Prime Minister Saad Hariri said Sunday he will return to Lebanon "within days" and that his surprising resignation was aimed at creating a “positive shock.”

In a live interview shown on Future TV, Hariri said he had resigned to protect Lebanon from imminent danger, although he didn't specify who was threatening the country. He said he will return to submit his resignation and seek a settlement with the rival camp.

But Hariri said withdrawing his resignation would be conditional on the Iranian-backed Hizbullah committing to remaining neutral on regional conflicts. Hizbullah has sent thousands of fighters to neighboring Syria to support the forces of Syria's President Bashar Assad and is accused by Riyadh of supporting Yemen’s Huthi rebels.

Hariri looked tired and sad in the interview from Saudi Arabia on his Future TV channel that lasted more than an hour. He held back tears as he spoke and repeated several times that he resigned to cause a "positive shock" and draw attention to the danger of siding with Iran in regional conflicts.

"We are in the eye of the storm," Hariri said.

He said the unity government he formed a year ago was supposed to stick to an agreement not to interfere in regional affairs but that Hizbullah has not kept up its end of the deal.

Apparently seeking to show he was not being detained by the Saudis, Hariri told the interviewer: "I am free."

He said his resignation was his own decision, dismissing reports he was forced into it. But he also said he is looking into security arrangements before returning to Lebanon, suggesting his life was in danger.

"I saw what happened ... when my father was martyred. I don't want the same thing to happen to me," Hariri said. His father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, was killed by a car bomb in Beirut in 2005.

The interview followed pressure from Lebanese officials, who said Hariri's resignation was not accepted because it was declared in Saudi Arabia. Many Lebanese have suspected Hariri was placed under house arrest as part of a Saudi plan to unravel a coalition government he had formed last year with Hizbullah.

Hariri said his resignation was designed to "cause a positive shock" in Lebanon, warning against what he said was Iranian interference that is ruining relations with other Arab countries.

President Michel Aoun said before the interview that the "mysterious circumstances for Hariri's stay in the Saudi capital of Riyadh makes all his positions questionable and in doubt and not of his own volition."

A dual Lebanese-Saudi national, the Saudi-allied Hariri unexpectedly announced his resignation on Nov. 4 in a pre-recorded message on Saudi TV, criticizing Iran and Hizbullah, and saying he feared for his safety. Hariri's family lives in Riyadh.

Hariri had not been heard from since but met with foreign diplomats, and appeared with Saudi royalty and in Abu Dhabi.

Saudi Arabia has stepped up its rhetoric against Hizbullah and its patron, Iran, accusing both of supporting Shiite rebels in Yemen known as Huthis. A Saudi-led coalition has been at war with the Huthis since March 2015.

Hariri said relations between Saudi Arabia and Hizbullah soured after the conflict began in Yemen.

Saudi Arabia has asked its citizens to leave Lebanon, and many Lebanese fear further economic sanctions or even military action against their country.

Hariri, 47, first held the post of prime minister in November 2009 for nearly two years before Hizbullah forced the collapse of his government. Hizbullah ministers withdrew because of differences over a U.N.-backed tribunal investigating his father's assassination.

Hariri was appointed prime minister in late 2016 and headed a 30-member coalition government that included Hizbullah. But it has been an uneasy partnership between Hariri, who heads a Sunni-led camp loyal to Saudi Arabia, and Hizbullah, which represents a faction loyal to Shiite Iran.

A business graduate of Georgetown University in Washington, he headed his father's Saudi-based construction business for years. The company has struggled with debts for years before closing down in July.

Hariri was born in Riyadh in 1970. He is Rafik Hariri's second son from his first Iraqi wife. He is married to a Syrian, and has three children, the oldest an 18-year-old son.

Timeline
  • 12 November 2017, 22:03

    Hariri: My relation with President Aoun is very cordial.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:57

    Hariri: My support for the Syrian people is a medal of honor on my chest.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:56

    Hariri: The anti-corruption campaign in Saudi Arabia is an internal affair.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:54

    Hariri: Saudi Arabia does not interfere in Lebanon but you remember Hariri's recent remarks.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:49

    Hariri: There will be extensive dialogue with the president when I return to discuss how we can continue the settlement.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:42

    Hariri: I thank every Lebanese who called for my return regardless of the party they belong to.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:40

    Hariri: I submitted my resignation so that people wake up.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:24

    Hariri: We must protect Lebanon and its stability and King Salman and Prince Mohammed care about Lebanon’s stability, economy and freedoms.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:19

    Hariri said the dissociation policy must be respected in order for him to reverse his resignation decision.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:07

    Hariri: I’m free in the kingdom and I can travel anytime I want.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:04

    Hariri: The Syrian regime does not want me alive and a lot of parties do not want Saad Hariri.

  • 12 November 2017, 21:03

    Hariri: Saudi Arabia loves Beirut but it won’t love it more than Riyadh. Will it continue to love Beirut when a Lebanese group tries to undermine the stability of the Gulf?

  • 12 November 2017, 20:55

    Hariri: I will submit my resignation in a constitutional manner.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:55

    Hariri: King Salman considers me a son and I respect the crown prince and he also respects me. I agree with them on a lot of issues and I disagree on a lot of issues.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:53

    Hariri: King Salman considers me a son and I respect the crown prince and he also respects me. I agree with them on a lot of issues and I disagree on a lot of issues, but there is mutual ground.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:40

    Hariri: I wrote the resignation statement and my aim was to make a "positive shock."

  • 12 November 2017, 20:39

    Hariri: I know that I have resigned in an unusual fashion, but I had to do some security precautions.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:38

    Hariri: I will return to Lebanon very soon.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:37

    Hariri: I have decided to speak because there is major ambiguity in the country.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:36

    Hariri: I do not care about my own life, my aim is to rescue the country.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:35

    Hariri: In order for the settlement to succeed, we must abide by the dissociation principle.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:33

    Hariri: I'm not against Hizbullah as a political party but that does not mean allowing Hizbullah to ruin Lebanon.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:32

    Hariri: I'm proud of the settlement I made.

  • 12 November 2017, 20:32

    Hariri: What is our interest in facing Arab sanctions on top of the U.S. sanctions?

  • 12 November 2017, 20:31

    Hariri to Future TV: My resignation was in Lebanon's interest.

Comments 17
Thumb EagleDawn 12 November 2017, 21:01

what a loser!

Thumb EagleDawn 12 November 2017, 21:13

Lol, you can always count on the gigahabil to make its iranian inspired comments regardless of the article.

Thumb ashtah 12 November 2017, 21:33

if he is a saudi tool, then why have you been carrying posters saying " I want my prime minister back".

Thumb EagleDawn 12 November 2017, 22:08

lol @mowateh

here is one mustaqbot expressing his yearning for the return of hariri:

"ado.australia Yesterday
Return our prime minister!!!!"

Thumb ashtah 12 November 2017, 22:12

rofl !!!!

Thumb janoubi 12 November 2017, 22:22

that's too funny:)

Thumb warrior 13 November 2017, 04:19

حجب محطتي "المستقبل" والـ"mtv"اللتين تبثان مقابلة الرئيس الحريري في عدد من المناطق اللبنانية وخصوصاً في الضاحية الجنوبية في عدد من أحياء بيروت، وفي بصاليم وجل الديب وبقنايا في المتن الشمالي، من قبل أصحاب الكابلات.۔21:10

Thumb ice-man 13 November 2017, 05:38

Saving Private Saad

Thumb scorpyonn 12 November 2017, 21:24

Iran is a scourge and a cancer.

Thumb justin 12 November 2017, 21:26

Seriously, this guy is a disgrace. I turned the TV off. He can hardly compose two words together.

Thumb ashtah 12 November 2017, 21:35

it is shameful he is a prime minister, I swear.

Thumb janoubi 12 November 2017, 22:22

agreed

Thumb ex-fpm 12 November 2017, 21:38

He cannot even articulate a strong case and still shifty when it comes to hezbollah. It's like he is in slow motion.

Thumb ex-fpm 12 November 2017, 21:39

BTW, Iranian-controlled Dahieh cut all TV links broadcasting the interview:)

Thumb ex-fpm 12 November 2017, 22:00

not really because as you well know how takiah works.

Thumb galaxy 12 November 2017, 22:45

Time for you Saad and the Hariri family to step aside and let someone who is competent and educated lead the Sunni community in Lebanon.

Thumb ice-man 13 November 2017, 05:37

Je Suis Saaad....