On Monday, the Assistant Secretary-General of the Arab League said in televised remarks that talks with Lebanon on its rift with Gulf states are heading in the “right direction.”
Lebanon is facing its worst rift yet with oil-rich Gulf Arab states, stimulated by comments about the Saudi-led intrusion in Yemen made by Lebanese Information Minister George Kordahi before his official appointment, in response to which a delegation from the Arab League has traveled to Beirut.
In an interview he said was recorded on August 5, prior to his appointment as minister, Kordahi said Yemen was subjected to aggression and that its Iran-aligned Houthis were defending themselves.
Saudi Arabia and some Gulf Arab allies have reacted angrily to the remarks made by the information minister in an interview last week. Riyadh expelled Lebanon’s ambassador, banned all imports from Lebanon, and recalled its envoy for consultations as a result.
Kuwait and Bahrain followed suit by expelling the top envoys in their own capitals, while the United Arab Emirates withdrew all its diplomats from Beirut.
