Zarif Claims Saudi Arabia Forced Hariri to Resign

Iran's Foreign Minister accused Saudi Arabia of forcing Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri to resign and of 'creating terrorist organizations and dictators.' Mohammad Javad Zarif, in an interview with Russian network RT, which was published by Iranian media including Fars News Agency, commented on Saudi Arabia's objections to Iran's support for Hezbollah, stating: 'Hezbollah is a political organization. It is not us who invite the Prime Minister of a country to our country and force him to resign.' Although Iranian officials had previously hinted at Saudi pressure on Hariri to resign, this time the Iranian Foreign Minister explicitly accused Saudi Arabia of 'forcing' Hariri to resign. Saad Hariri, Lebanon's Prime Minister and the most influential Sunni politician close to Saudi Arabia in Lebanon, resigned on November 4, a day after a trip to Riyadh, sharply criticizing Iran and Hezbollah. Some of his close associates told news agencies that Saudi Arabia was dissatisfied with Hariri's performance in countering Hezbollah. The Iranian Foreign Ministry had previously protested the accusations made against the Islamic Republic in Hariri's resignation statement, claiming that he was acting under the guidance of Israel and Saudi Arabia in this 'game.' Hariri's resignation added to the ongoing conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia in recent months. When announcing his resignation in Riyadh, Hariri accused Iran of interfering in the internal affairs of other countries. Lebanese officials stated that Saudi Arabia had forced Hariri to resign and that he was under house arrest until French government intervention led to his return. Hariri denied these claims. On December 5, Hariri retracted his resignation, thus ending a month-long political crisis in the country. In another part of his remarks, Zarif stated that the Islamic Republic had responded positively to 'all proposals' for dialogue with Saudi Arabia, but officials in that country 'instead of taking a reciprocal step, rejected Iranian officials' offers.' Zarif also again accused Saudi Arabia of 'producing terrorist organizations and dictators,' including support for the Islamic State (ISIS). He added: 'It is better for our Saudi neighbor to understand as soon as possible that the snake it has created, all the snakes it has created over the past 40 years – whether Saddam Hussein, the Taliban, or ISIS – have ultimately bitten them.' Iranian officials have repeatedly accused Saudi Arabia of supporting ISIS. Saudi Arabia is a member of the international coalition against ISIS led by the United States. Relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia have soured following conflicts in Syria and Yemen, and the verbal tensions between the two countries' officials have entered a new phase following Hariri's recent resignation and a missile fired at Riyadh by Houthi rebels in Yemen. Meanwhile, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, stated on December 6 that 'the American-following governments' in the region have 'no end but destruction.' Prior to these remarks, Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, had referred to the leader of the Islamic Republic as a 'new Hitler' emerging in the Middle East. The next day, Bahram Qasemi, the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, described these remarks as 'immature, ill-considered, and trivial,' stating that they 'have caused no one in the world and the international arena to regard it with any credibility.'