During the urgent meeting of Arab foreign ministers held in Cairo on Sunday, Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit stated that Iran’s threats to Arab nations and its committed violations should be stopped, as Arab nations will not accept living in terror.
Following news agency reports on the absence of Lebanese Foreign Minister, Al-Nahar website reported that Lebanese FM Gebran Bassil’s decision came in light of a “political crisis in the country after Al-Hariri resigned suddenly while in Riyadh.”
Al-Hariri arrived in Paris on Saturday, after denying claims that he was being held hostage in Saudi Arabia. He criticised Hezbollah and Iran’s meddling in Lebanese affairs. Saudi Arabia and Bahrain’s foreign ministers said Iran was behind hostile practices in Arab countries’ affairs.
A closed meeting preceded the Arab League session on Sunday afternoon, upon request from Saudi Arabia and was supported by Bahrain, Kuwait, and the UAE.
This comes amid escalations by Saudi Arabia against Iran, also reflected in the war against Iran-backed Houthi militias and the boycott of Qatar in which Egypt, Bahrain and the UAE are involved.
Last week, FM Sameh Shoukry visited Jordan, the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. He spoke with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on the update of the tour, his ministry said in a statement