Saudi, Iranian and Syrian envoys to meet over tension in Lebanon

Al-Liwaa newspaper reported that the The ambassadors of Syria, Saudi Arabia and Iran will be meeting for lunch on Tuesday to stress the stability in Lebanon.

The meeting is reportedly designed to discuss an Arab-Iranian umbrella to get the Lebanese to overcome the tension that will be created by the indictment of the special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL).

The meeting which comes on the eve of the cabinet meeting and which will take place at the residence of the Syrian ambassador, will include Syrian ambassador Ali Abdul Karim Ali , Saudi Arabian ambassador Ali Awad Asiri and Iranian ambassador Ghazanfar-Rokn Abadi

The cabinet is scheduled to meet on Wednesday to discuss the issue of the “false witnesses” in the assassination of Lebanon’s former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

Asiri told Al-Liwaa on Monday :

“We will stress (during our meeting) on the need for the Lebanese to adhere to unity and the need to strengthen the internal front to face any dramatic developments.”

In a related development according to reports coming from Syria, Syrian president Bashar al Assad met yesterday in Damascus with visiting Iranian minister of intelligence Haider Maslahi and the son of the Saudi Monarch prince Abdullah Bin Abdel Aziz to discuss the special Tribunal for Lebanon indictment .

Tension escalated in Lebanon following reports that the Special Tribunal for Lebanon will soon issue its indictment into the 2005 assassination of Lebanon’s former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Last July, Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said that the tribunal is “an Israeli project” that will indict Hezbollah members. Nasrallah accused Israel of being behind Hariri’s assassination but refused to provide the evidence to STL to support his claim. Hezbollah and its March 8 allies have been calling for the abolition of STL.

Some leaders are concerned that should the court indict Hezbollah members, it could lead to a Shiite-Sunni strife.

Al Akhbar newspaper reported yesterday in which it claimed that Hezbollah has prepared a plan to take over Lebanon when STL issues its indictment for the 2005 murder of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.