BAHRAIN and Saudi Arabia have said they have asked Lebanon’s ambassadors in their countries to leave in 48 hours.
Saudi Arabia said it has also recalled its envoy to Beirut.
Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry said last night that the action has been taken “against the background of a series of unacceptable and offensive statements issued by Lebanese officials in recent times”.
It clarified that the decision does not affect the Lebanese residents in the kingdom.
Riyadh also ordered the immediate halt to all Lebanese imports, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
The decision follows “the insulting statements” made during an interview given by Lebanon’s Information Minister George Kordahi before he became a minister.
Kordahi had said that Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis were defending themselves and described the yearslong war in Yemen as “futile.”
Saudi Arabia has affirmed its keenness on the Lebanese citizens residing in the kingdom, “whom it considers part of the fabric and bond that unites the Saudi people and their Arab brothers residing in the kingdom,” according to the statement.
The ministry added that it did not consider that what was said by Kordahi reflected the positions of the Lebanese community residing in the kingdom.
Kordahi said on Wednesday that his remarks were his personal views, made before he was appointed as minister and that he was committed to the current government’s policy.
“I am against Arab-Arab wars… accusing me of hostility towards Saudi Arabia is rejected,” he said.
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati, trying to avert diplomatic fallout, said that Kordahi made those comments in an interview that was recorded more than a month before he became a member of the cabinet.
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