Hezbollah leader calls Iran-Saudi reconciliation 'good development'

Beirut: The head of Lebanon’s powerful armed group Hezbollah said on Friday the resumption of ties between its backer Iran and longtime rival Saudi Arabia was a “good development”.

Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed on Friday to re-establish relations after years of hostility, which had threatened stability in the Gulf and prompted frequent political disputes in Lebanon.

“This is a good development,” said Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah in a televised address. “We have complete confidence that this will not come at our expense.”

Nasrallah cautioned that the full implications of the step were not yet known but said Hezbollah was “happy”.

“It’s an important development, of course, and if it proceeds in its natural course it could open up horizons in the entire region, including in Lebanon,” he added.

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Hezbollah was established in Lebanon by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in 1982 and is a key part of Tehran’s regional alliance.

Nasrallah last year accused Saudi Arabia’s king of terrorism, in the midst of one of the deepest political crises between Gulf Arab states and Lebanon. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia had called on Lebanon to end “terrorist Hezbollah’s” influence over the state.

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Saudi Arabia and a number of other Gulf Arab states withdrew their ambassadors and expelled Lebanese envoys in late 2021 over what the kingdom later said was arch-foe Hezbollah’s dominance of the Lebanese state.

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The ambassadors returned in the spring of 2022, but differences remain.

Nasrallah earlier this week backed Christian politician Suleiman Frangieh to be president after a nearly five-month vacuum in the presidency.

A Lebanese political source and a European diplomatic source told Reuters that Saudi Arabia has opposed Frangieh’s candidacy given his close relationship to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Hezbollah.

Nasrallah said on Friday his party was also happy to see increased Arab engagement with Syria’s government following the devastating Feb. 6 earthquakes that left thousands dead in neighbouring Syria, which is also backed by Iran.

Syria was suspended by the Arab League following its crackdown against protests more than a decade ago but Assad has seen an outpouring of support from Arab states following the earthquakes.

The foreign ministers of Egypt and Jordan both visited Damascus in the weeks following the earthquake and Saudi Arabia said increased engagement with Syria might pave the way for its return to the Arab League.

“What is correct is the return of the Arab world to Syria. Syria did not leave the Arab League,” Nasrallah said. “We are happy that the Arab world has returned to Syria.”

There was no immediate comment from Damascus on the resumption of ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

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