person:bahaa hariri

Saudi Arabia has no Lebanon endgame in sight - and it’s bound to backfire - Middle East News - Haaretz.com
▻https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/.premium-1.822316

https://www.haaretz.com/polopoly_fs/1.822331.1510490907!/image/3485848426.jpg_gen/derivatives/headline_1200x630/3485848426.jpg

But solely economic pressure may not be enough to force a change in government. According to the Lebanese constitution, the appointment of a prime minister is in the hands of the president, and current President Michel Aoun is an ally of Hezbollah. Tradition has always dictated that the prime minister’s appointment requires consultation with and agreement between all the sides. So even if the Hariri family and the Future Movement agree to bow to the Saudi pressure, Hezbollah and its allies in the government and the parliament can still stymie the appointment of Bahaa Hariri and trap Lebanon in a political and economic dead end.

It is not clear what Saudi Arabia would gain from such a stalemate, particularly when Lebanese public opinion has begun to turn to outrage over the crude and unprecedented intervention in the country’s internal affairs. It is possible the kingdom is betting that the economic pressure will force Hezbollah to give up its political strongholds, damaging Iranian interests in the process, but at the same time Iran can replace Saudi Arabia as Lebanon’s economic sponsor and compensate for the economic damage caused by the Saudis.

Saudi hints at a military option against Lebanon – hints that Hezbollah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah has already used to declare that a military alliance exists between Israel and Saudi Arabia, and Israel will be the one who attacks Lebanon – cannot really impress anyone. The opening of another front in Lebanon, in addition to the failed war Saudi Arabia is running in Yemen, is a nightmare for the international community, too.

Does Saudi Arabia have any endgame in mind for the process it has started in Lebanon? If it does, it has hidden it quite well.

#arabie_saoudite #Liban

Au Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East et au WINEP, on défend ouvertement nos amis d’Al Qaeda :
▻http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2014/10/02/241894_us-anti-assad-rebels-in-syria.html?sp=/99/200/111/&rh=1

“If indeed we end up hitting Nusra hard, then we’re forcing the opposition to choose a side,” said Faysal Itani, a Syria specialist with the Washington-based Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East. “And we’re depriving them of a key asset when, at the same time, we don’t have a plan to boost their capabilities fast enough to make up for the loss of Nusra.”

[…]

The risk of empowering an al Qaida affiliate is a small price to pay for Nusra’s contributions on the battlefield, said Jeffrey White, a former senior Defense Intelligence Agency analyst who’s now with the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, a think tank.

“We are degrading, by hitting Nusra, the capability of one of the most effective combat forces against the regime and against Hezbollah,” White said, referring to the Lebanese Shiite Muslim militia that has sent troops to help defend the Assad government. “Do we really want to do that? A broader campaign against Nusra needs to be carefully thought through.”

Business et politique au Liban
Mikati, Safra in top Forbes Arab-rich list | Business , Lebanon | THE DAILY STAR
▻http://dailystar.com.lb/Business/Lebanon/2013/Apr-16/213907-mikati-safra-in-top-forbes-arab-rich-list.ashx#axzz2QhZg0tLS

Najib and Taha Mikati occupied the 8th positions with $3.5 billion each while Bahaa Hariri, the eldest son of the late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, was ranked in the 15th position, with a wealth of $2.4 billion.

Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s wealth was estimated at $1.9 billion, ranking him in the 26th position. His brothers Ayman and Fahed ranked 31st, with a wealth of $1.35 billion each.

Notre affaire Cahuzac est ridicule en comparaison...
#Liban