Saudi Envoy Lauds Lebanese Condemnation of Ayyoub's Editorial
Saudi Charge d’Affaires in Lebanon Walid Bukhari on Friday hailed Lebanese officials, journalists, opinion leaders and citizens for condemning an editorial in ad-Diyar newspaper that carried insults against him and against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The Lebanese people “are the people of the kingdom and its friends,” Bukhari said to a delegation comprising civil society groups, independent figures, businessmen, engineers, physicians, lawyers, clerics and politicians, which visited him at the embassy to deplore the article written by Charles Ayyoub, ad-Diyar’s publisher and managing editor.
Bukhari said the editorial “does not reflect the ethics of all media outlets in Lebanon,” noting that “all attempts to question the kingdom’s role and leadership in the region have failed.”
The envoy thanked President Michel Aoun, pointing out that “from the very beginning, he focused on taking all the legal measures in a decisive way.”
Bukhari also thanked Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri “who expressed his condemnation and took the necessary legal measures.”
“The kingdom will not allow such subservient writers to affect the relation between the two countries,” the charge d’affaires added.
“All components of the Lebanese society have expressed their condemnation and I will never forget this stance,” he went on to say.
Caretaker Justice Minister Salim Jreissati on Tuesday filed a court case against Ayyoub, accusing him of harming Lebanon's relations with Saudi Arabia.
Ayyoub wrote a column blaming the Saudi crown prince for the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and the deaths of civilians in Yemen. He called on Bukhari to leave Lebanon, and used the terms "dogs" and "pigs" 22 times in describing the two Saudi officials.
Jreissati asked the prosecutor general to initiate proceedings against ad-Diyar, saying the article violated Lebanese law and endangered the country.
Saudi Arabia is closely allied with one of Lebanon's main political blocs and has provided extensive financial aid to the country.
