Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun urged Saudi Arabia on Saturday to explain why Saad Hariri had not returned to Beirut since his surprise resignation as prime minister a week ago.
Hariri announced on November 4 in a televised statement from Riyadh that he would be stepping down from the post, sending shock waves through Lebanese politics.
The premier has yet to return to Lebanon and rumors have swirled that he is being held in Saudi Arabia against his will.
President Michel Aoun on Saturday called on the kingdom to “clarify the reasons that have prevented the return of PM Hariri to Lebanon to be among his people and supporters”.
“The obscurity surrounding the condition of PM Saad Hariri since his resignation a week ago means that all positions and actions declared by him or attributed to him do not reflect the truth,” Aoun added.
“They are instead a result of the ambiguous and obscure conditions (under which) PM Hariri is living in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”
Aoun on Saturday spoke by phone to French President Emmanuel Macron on the “latest developments” around Hariri’s resignation, Lebanon’s presidency said in a statement.
The Lebanese head of state has yet to formally accept Hariri’s resignation and has criticized the circumstances surrounding it as “unacceptable”.
Source: Agencies
