When Prime Minister Sa’d al-Hariri was summoned on 3 November to Riyadh and allegedly compelled to resign as Prime Minister of Lebanon amidst Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman’s “anti-corruption” crackdown, something was clearly awry. Mr Hariri cited a foiled assassination plot and Iranian-fuelled “sedition, devastation and ruin” in the Arab world perplexingly less than a year after forming a coalition government with Hezbollah.
Following an 18-day maelstrom rife with speculation and conspiracy theories, Mr Hariri returned to Lebanon to tender his resignation on 22 November. But after meeting President Michel Aoun, who requested Mr Hariri reconsider his decision, the resignation was shelved. The prime minister will likely remain in office at least until elections are held in May, and Mr Hariri’s “un-resignation” will become another political anomaly in a country where anomalies are the norm. (CONTINUED - 719 WORDS)
