29 Mar 2024
Tuesday 7 February 2017 - 10:35
Story Code : 250081

How Iran-Saudi rapprochement is impacting Lebanon

Al Monitor| Josephine Deeb: Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Irans Supreme National Security Council, saidJan. 16 that Iran does not want to topple the Saudi royal family because leaving an opening for theIslamic State to risewould not be any better.


Shamkhanis words did not go unnoticed in the regional and Lebanese political scenes.

The regional political disputes between Saudi Arabia and Iran have translated into political conflicts in Yemen, Bahrain, Iraq and Syria, affecting their allies in Lebanon. Serious confrontations broke out over the years between Lebanese political parties, specifically Iran-allied Hezbollah and the Saudi-backed Future Movement.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was crystal clear at the World Economic Congress in Davos on Jan. 18when he said that Iran and Saudi Arabia must cooperate to end the conflicts in Syria and Yemen, just like they did in Lebanon when they worked toliftthe obstacles forLebanese presidential elections.

Zarifs words about the Saudi-Iranian understanding that allowed for the election of a president in Lebanonsparked a variety of reactionsdomestically. For his part, Christian Lebanese ForcesParty leaderSamir Geagea tweeted Jan. 19 that rumors that regional countries were behind the agreement to end the presidential stalemateareuntrue.

Sadeq Nabulsi, a cleric and Lebanese University lecturerwho often comments on Hezbollah, told Al-Monitor, Iran wants to strengthen ties with Saudi Arabia and reach an understanding to solve political and sectarian disputes.

He added, Iran also believes that rapprochement with the kingdom would ensure a solid base for positive ties with other Muslim countries, especially with the looming security threats [toIran] in case of a vacuum in the kingdom or chaos instead of the current Al Saud family rule, in reference to warnings by Iranian officials about the potential advent of ISin the kingdom.

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