BEIRUT (Reuters) – The Lebanese government sought to avert diplomatic fallout from comments made by the information minister before he took office that were critical of the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen, saying the remarks were his opinion and not policy.
In comments to an online show affiliated with Qatar’s Al Jazeera network, George Kordahi, now information minister, said Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis were defending themselves and called the war “futile”.
The interview, which Kordahi said was recorded on Aug. 5, has been widely circulated on social media since Tuesday.
Prime Minister Najib Mikati said the interview was recorded more than a month before his cabinet was formed and reflected a personal opinion that had nothing to do with government. Lebanon, he added, was eager for the best relations with Arab states.
The Gulf Cooperation Council’s secretary general slammed Kordahi’s comments, saying they reflected little understanding and a superficial reading of events.
GCC member Kuwait summoned Lebanon’s charge d’affaires in protest. The Yemeni foreign ministry called on Beirut to clarify its position on the comments, according to a statement issued by its embassy in Beirut that was reported by Lebanon’s National News Agency.
Relations between Lebanon and Gulf Arab states have been strained because of the influence wielded in Beirut by the Iran-backed Shi’ite group Hezbollah.
Beirut has adopted a policy of staying out of regional conflicts even as Hezbollah has deployed fighters to Syria. The Saudi-led coalition says Hezbollah has sent fighters to Yemen.
Kordahi said on Wednesday his remarks were personal views made before he was a minister, and that he was committed to government policy. “I am against Arab-Arab wars … accusing me of hostility to Saudi Arabia is rejected.”
He said he would not resign.
When asked during the show about drone attacks, which the Houthis have launched repeatedly into Saudi Arabia along with missiles, he answered: “Yes, but see also the damage that is being done to them as a nation … they are being bombed by planes”.
The Saudi-led coalition says it does not intentionally target civilians in Yemen, where air strikes have killed civilians at hospitals, schools and markets during the nearly seven year war.
(Reporting by Maha El Dahan; additional reporting by Ghaida Ghantous in Dubai; writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Michael Perry, Christina Fincher and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
