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WORLD NEWS Tuesday 21 November 2017

Iran, Lebanon reject Arab League criticism as tensions mount

region and vowing to take alition government. in recent weeks that they
the matter to the U.N. Se- Aoun said Lebanon rejects would consider the Leba-
curity Council. any accusation that its nese government hostile if
Lebanese President Michel government “is a partner in Hezbollah joins any future
Aoun, a Christian ally of He- terrorist attacks.” government. The Saudi
zbollah, also rejected the Arab League chief Ahmed statement was rejected by
Arab League statement, Aboul-Gheit, who visited many Lebanese, who see
which had accused the Lebanon and met with Par- Hezbollah as a legitimate
militant group of terrorism liament Speaker Nabih Berri representative of the coun-
and of supporting “terrorist on Monday, said Lebanon try’s Shiites.
groups” across the region. “cannot be an arena for Tensions spiked between
Aoun said Lebanon had any Arab-Iranian confron- Saudi Arabia and Iran after
been subjected to Israeli tation.” the Yemen rebels, known
“aggression” for decades He added that naming He- as Houthis, fired a ballistic
and had the right to de- zbollah a terrorist organiza- missile that was intercept-
fend itself. Hezbollah, the tion is not new as it hap- ed outside Riyadh earlier
only Lebanese group to re- pened during last year’s this month. Saudi Arabia
tain its arms after the 1975- Arab summit. He also clari- has accused Iran and Hez-
1990 civil war, forced Israel fied that the accusations bollah of arming the rebels,
to withdraw from southern of terrorism were leveled at charges denied by both.
Lebanon in 2000 and con- “one of the ruling partners” Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shi-
tinues to portray itself as in the Lebanese govern- ite Iran have long vied for
Lebanon’s first line of de- ment, and not the govern- regional supremacy, and
fense. Hezbollah is also a ment as a whole. support rival proxies across
member of Lebanon’s co- Saudi officials have said the Middle East.q

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, right, arrives for
a meeting at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.
Iran on Monday rejected a harsh statement by Arab League
foreign ministers condemning the Islamic Republic and its proxy
Hezbollah.
(AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran on men, where a Saudi-led
Monday rejected a harsh coalition has been at war
statement by Arab League with Tehran-backed rebels
foreign ministers condemn- since March 2015. He also
ing the Islamic Republic called on Saudi Arabia
and its proxy Hezbollah, to drop its boycott of the
saying the tirade was “full Gulf Arab nation of Qatar,
of lies” and the product of which has warm ties with
Saudi “pressure and propa- Iran.
ganda.” Arab League foreign min-
State media quoted For- isters meeting in Cairo on
eign Ministry spokesman Sunday lashed out at Iran
Bahram Ghasemi as calling and the Lebanese militant
on Saudi Arabia to stop its group Hezbollah, accusing
“barbaric attacks” on Ye- them of destabilizing the

Syrian opposition leader quits

ahead of a new round of talks

BEIRUT (AP) — A senior minister under President
Syrian opposition leader Bashar Assad, did not
quit his post Monday, a give a reason for his
week before a new round decision but referred in
of U.N.-sponsored peace the statement to attempts
talks in Geneva. by foreign powers to
Riyad Hijab said in a carve up Syria into zones
statement that he is of influence “through
stepping down as head of side deals made without
the Syrian opposition’s High consulting the Syrian
Negotiations Committee people,” a reference to
after two years in the post. Russian-led cease-fire
Hijab, a former prime talks.q