Rabat – Iran rejected on Saturday allegations made by Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri who accused Iran of spreading “fear and destruction” in several countries.
On Saturday, Hariri announced his surprising resignation as prime minister during a televised speech from Saudi Arabia. The official said that there might be a possible assassination plot against him, recalling the murder of his father, Rafiq Hariri, former Lebanese prime minister.
For its part, Iran rejected Hariri’s claims through Hussein Sheikh al-Islam, an adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The official said that Hariri’s decision to resign from his office is “a plot made by the U.S., Saudi Arabia and Israel.”
Bahram Qasemi, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, said that Hariri’s departure’s goal is to escalate regional tensions. “Hariri’s resignation was aimed at creating tension in Lebanon and the region,” said Qasemi who was quoted by Irna News Agency.
Qasemi said that Hariri’s claims against the Islamic republic is a “repetition of false and unfounded anti-iran accusations by the Zionist regime, the Saudis and the Americans.”
For the official, Hariri’s sudden resignation and its announcement from another country “is not only a source of pity and wonder,” but also “indicates he is playing in a ground where the ill-wishers of the region have designed,” he stated.
The Iranian spokesman added that “the winner of this ground is not the Arab and Muslim countries, but the Zionist regime that have defined its existence in tension among the Muslim countries across the region.”
In a televised broadcast from Saudi Arabia, Hariri severely criticized Iran and its Lebanese Shia ally Hezbollah, for “their meddling in Arab affairs.”
“We are living in a climate similar to the atmosphere that prevailed before the assassination of martyr Rafik al-Hariri,” the Lebanese resigned president said, adding that “I have sensed what is being plotted covertly to target my life,” he added.
