Saudi Arabia has asked its citizens for the second time in less than two weeks to leave Lebanon "as soon as possible" given the tension over the resignation of Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

The announcement early Saturday was posted on the Saudi embassy Twitter account. It came shortly after the embassy reported that it is closely following reports of an attack on two Saudi nationals in a Beirut neighborhood.

There was no immediate security report of the incident. Hariri tweeted before he left Saudi Arabia that any attack on a Saudi is an attack on him personally.

Speaker of the House, Nabih Berri, on Monday told Arab League Secretary General, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, that tens of Arab League resolutions confirmed the Lebanese resistance's right to liberate occupied territories and support Lebanon in resisting Israel.

This week on 60 Minutes, correspondent Scott Pelley reports on the dire conditions for children in Yemen. The situation is so severe that, according to the U.N., a child in Yemen dies every ten minutes. But the widespread starvation is an underreported story because, as Pelley explains, the Saudi-led blockade that's cutting off food supplies is also blocking journalists from entering Yemen.

"As soon as we got to Djibouti, the Saudis rescinded the permission that they had given us to be on the ship," Pelley says. So the team started asking questions. Was the ship being held in port? No, they were told. It was still going; they were not.

From the window in their hotel room, they watched the ship depart without them.

Though physically blocked, the team was not deterred.

The Lebanese government and Palestinian resistance forces strongly condemned a decision by the Arab League to designate the Hezbollah resistance movement as a terrorist organization.

Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil said in a statement that he had refused to list Hezbollah as a terror group as it was a “fundamental component of the Lebanese state,” presstv reported.

Arab League Secretary-General Ahmad Aboul Gheit announced at a media conference in Cairo on Sunday that Arab states agreed to designate Hezbollah a terrorist organization, adding that he would not “rule out going to the United Nations Security Council as a next step.”

Hezbollah has raised its military readiness on the whole Lebanese territory in the last few days and put its forces on high alert in the light of the threats it has received from a number of countries, and especially from Israel and Saudi Arabia. Hezbollah forces have been mobilized in the event of any hostile activity on the borders or in the country, notwithstanding the ongoing conviction of its leadership that Israel will not wage a direct war in the near or distant future.

According to well informed sources, Hezbollah fears the possible assassination of a well-known Lebanese figure, Sunni or Christian, similar to the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005. The aim would be to re-mix the cards on the Lebanese scene, accuse Hezbollah and to embarrass President Michel Aoun.

Don't expect Benjamin Netanyahu to put Israeli soldiers in harm's way in Lebanon on Mohammed bin Salman's say-so.

When Saudi Arabia called for the emergency meeting, divides showed face, too. Iraq declared that it will not take part on the level of foreign minister in the meeting. Additionally, the foreign minister of Libyan national unity government Mohammed Taha Siala has announced that Libya sent a letter to the Arab League head informing him that it was not participating. Lebanon is another Arab country that is expected to challenge the closing statement if it blasts Hezbollah. In March 2016 summit, the Lebanese and Iraqi representatives opposed labeling Hezbollah a terrorist organization. Responding to Beirut objection, Saudi Arabia froze $3 billion in military aid presented to Lebanon by Riyadh. Moreover, the Qatari spat with Saudi Arabia is slated to overshadow the ending statement about Hezbollah condemnation and continuation of Saudi Arabia’s destabilizing behavior in Yemen and Lebanon.

Riyadh’s attempt to assert control in Lebanon and open up a new front against Hezbollah and Iran has brought little return, but substantial reputational damage. But does Saudi Arabia even care about playing geopolitical chess, or does it just want to fling pieces at its adversaries?

The road trip-slash-conspiracy thriller that began with Saad Hariri’s surprise resignation as Lebanese Prime Minister from Saudi Arabia on November 4 is by no means over: Perhaps Emmanuel Macron will help Hariri hold on to his position by mediating the crisis in Paris this weekend, or maybe the trip to France is merely the beginning of his exile. And even if Hariri does return to Beirut to the embrace of sympathetic locals, victimhood is not always the easiest route to retaining power.

The United States and France agreed on the need to work with allies to counter the “destabilising” activities of Iran and its Lebanese proxy, Hizbollah, in the Middle East.

US president Donald Trump spoke with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, about the situation in Lebanon and Syria, said a White House statement on Saturday.

“Both presidents agreed on the need to work with allies to counter Hizbollah’s and Iran’s destabilising activities in the region,” it said.

Lebanon's foreign minister will not attend an extraordinary Arab League meeting on Sunday called by Saudi Arabia to discuss "violations" committed by Iran, a ministry source told AFP.

Arab foreign ministers will gather in Cairo on Sunday at the request of Riyadh, whose simmering regional rivalry with Tehran has escalated in recent weeks.

But Lebanon's top diplomat Gebran Bassil will not be among them, a foreign ministry source said.

After jailing dozens of members of the royal family, and extorting numerous prominent businessmen, 32-year-old Saudi prince Mohammed bin Salman has widened his so-called 'corruption' probe further still.

The Wall Street Journal reports that at least two dozen military officers, including multiple commanders, recently have been rounded up in connection to the Saudi government’s sweeping corruption investigation, according to two senior advisers to the Saudi government.

Additionally, several prominent businessmen also were taken in by Saudi authorities in recent days.

A number of businessmen including Loai Nasser, Mansour al-Balawi, Zuhair Fayez and Abdulrahman Fakieh also were rounded up in recent days, the people said.

Attempts to reach the businessmen or their associates were unsuccessful.

US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was doing well in transforming the country.

Commenting on the recent Saudi regime “anti-corruption” purges, the US official said the United States is closely watching the situation in Saudi Arabia amid reported asset agreements between Saudi authorities and some detainees in an anti-corruption crackdown.

“I think Mohammed bin Salman is doing well in terms of transforming the country”, Mnuchin said.

Recently, bin Salman announced he is preparing for a confrontation with Iran and Hezbollah, during which he would resort to the Israeli military aid.

In what can only be described as a masterful play to entice Saudi Arabia to list shares of Aramco in Hong Kong (assuming the kingdom follows through with the listing, which is reportedly in jeopardy) Chinese state media reported Friday that Chinese President Xi Jinping pledged to strengthen the relationship between China and Saudi Arabia as the latter tries to reform its economy.

According to the South China Morning Post, Xi vowed to strengthen cooperation between the two states at a time when the Middle Eastern kingdom is facing a political shake-up at home, and heightened tensions with Lebanon and Iran. Xi’s vow of friendship came with the crucial qualifier that the relationship between the two countries wouldn’t be affected by shifting international circumstances.

After jailing dozens of members of the royal family, and extorting numerous prominent businessmen, 32-year-old Saudi prince Mohammed bin Salman has widened his so-called 'corruption' probe further still.

Saudi Arabia has recalled its ambassador to Germany.

This move was made in response to comments by German foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel suggesting that Saudi Arabia has detained Saad Hariri.

The German foreign ministry quoted Gabriel on its website as telling his Lebanese counterpart Gebran Bassil “Germany stands firmly by Lebanon’s side”. He reportedly added: “Another trouble spot is the last thing that people in the Middle East need now.”

The (outgoing) Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri has arrived in the French capital city of Paris after finally being allowed to depart Saudi Arabia.

On Saturday morning, a Boeing aircraft carrying Hariri landed at Le Bourget Airport in Paris where a Lebanese delegation was waiting.

Hariri was accompanied only by his wife Lara, however, the Lebanese media said that his eldest son Hossam arrived n France yesterday already.

His two other children reportedly stayed in Saudi Arabia.

Hariri is expected to meet with the French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Palace later in the day.

Recent events in Saudi Arabia are truly stunning. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is said to be a reformer on an anti-corruption drive. Others say differently. Saudi Arabia is experiencing a life-threatening crisis that could ignite a region-wide conflict. And the Trump administration appears to be on board.

“Russia’s carefully-calibrated weapons sales to the opposing Persian Gulf powers follows a pattern established by China over the past decade. China sells missiles to Iran as well as to the KSA, but it sells more advanced missiles to the Saudis, because the Saudis are the weaker of the two adversaries, and China wants to maintain the balance of power. Russia has been called a ‘spoiler’ in the Middle East so often that the term clings like a Homeric epithet. In recent weeks, Russian policy has shifted to classic balance-of-power politics.”[emphasis added]

China knows this, Russia knows this, and most importantly, Saudi Arabia knows this, too.

That is why on multiple occasions, Saudi Arabia has expressed its desire to “have the battle in Iran rather than in Saudi Arabia.”

Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement must disarm and become a regular political party for the situation in Lebanon to stabilize, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said. He added that Riyadh’s policy is a reaction to Iran’s “aggression.”

As we noted shortly after the Crown Prince’s purge of potential rivals within Saudi Arabia’s sprawling ruling family, while the dozens of arrests were made under the pretext of an "anti-corruption crackdown", Mohammed bin Salman’s ulterior motive was something else entirely: Replenishing the Kingdom’s depleted foreign reserves, which have been hammered for the past three years by low oil prices, with some estimating that the current purge could potentially bring in up to $800 billion in proceeds.

Furthermore, the geopolitical turmoil unleashed by the unprecedented crackdown helped push oil prices higher, creating an ancillary benefit for both the kingdom’s rulers and the upcoming IPO of Aramco.

And, in the latest confirmation that the crackdown was all about cash, the Financial Times reports today that the Saudi government has offered the new occupants of the Riyadh Ritz-Carlton a way out.... and it’s going to cost them: In some cases, as much as 70% of their net worth.

The chief of staff of Israel's military (IDF) told Saudi Alaf newspaper in an unprecedented interview that his country is ready to share intelligence on Iran with Riyadh.
"With President Donald Trump, there is an opportunity for a new international alliance in the region and a major strategic plan to stop the Iranian threat," Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot, chief of staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told the paper. "We are ready to exchange experiences with moderate Arab countries and exchange intelligence to confront Iran."

When asked whether Israel has recently share intelligence with Saudi Arabia, Eisenkot responded by saying: "We are ready to share information if necessary. There are many common interests between us..."

Read more
© Global Look PressIran & Saudi Arabia saber-rattling: Who would prevail in all-out war?

THE UNITED NATIONS warned today that fuel supplies needed to run Yemen’s hospital generators and pump clean water will run out in less than three weeks unless the Saudi-led coalition lifts its blockade.
The dire forecast came as Yemen battles one of the world’s worst outbreaks of cholera, with nearly one million people infected. Some 2,200 people have died.
Adding to the woes of aid workers on the ground, stocks of diphtheria vaccines will be emptied in two weeks unless aid deliveries are once again allowed in the country, UN spokesman Farhan Haq said.

The Saudi-led military coalition shut down Yemen’s sea and air ports as well as borders on 6 November in response to a missile attack by the Iran-backed Huthi rebels near Riyadh.

UN aid chief Mark Lowcock warned last week that unless the blockade was lifted, Yemen will face “the largest famine the world has seen for many decades, with millions of victims.”

The US Air Force plans to keep refueling Saudi Arabian warplanes committing atrocities in Yemen that have led to the world’s most pressing humanitarian crisis, according to the United Nations.
The US House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly in support of House Resolution 599 Monday, passing the measure by a vote of 366-30. The bipartisan bill does not prevent US tankers from providing fuel to Saudi warplanes but does call for a political solution to the crisis, which House Democrats apparently saw as a compromise.

People stand at the site of an airstrike which witnesses said was by Saudi-led coalition aircraft on mourners at a hall where a wake for the father of Jalal al-Roweishan, the interior minister in the Houthi-dominated Yemeni government, was being held, in Sanaa, Yemen October 8, 2016
© REUTERS/ KHALED ABDULLAH
Riyadh Secretly Recognizes Coalition Plane Bombed Funeral in Yemen's Sanaa

We haven’t heard too many new outrages from Saudi Arabia in a few days. So perhaps the ambitious Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman is toning down his ambitions after the U.S. warned him he was going too far; or else he temporarily moderated himself preparing for a new onslaught on as yet unspecified targets.

Salman has been doing a lot of summoning of his rivals and satraps in order to apprise them who’s the new sheriff in town and demand broad obeisance. If he doesn’t like the answers he’s getting or doesn’t trust his interlocutors, he has them shipped off to the “spa” for a session with one of his royal masseurs, schooled in the art of relaxation techniques. Many of the royal rivals he arrested received such treatment.

But Salman has treated his foreign satraps a bit more gingerly.

Riyadh almost certainly forced the resignation of Lebanon's prime minister. As rumors swirl of his being "held against his will" and a complex Saudi drama plays out, Beirut is impatient to know why

Prime Minister Saad Hariri told reporters that he would not be answering questions on details of his plans to travel to France, following a meeting with the French foreign minister in Riyadh Thursday.

In an unprecedented move, a Saudi newspaper on Thursday published an interview with the Israeli military chief, Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot. This is the first time that an Israeli chief of staff is interviewed by a media outlet in the kingdom, which doesn't have diplomatic ties with Israel.

For years now, I have been warning about the relationship of interdependency between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia and how this relationship, if ended, would mean disaster for the petrodollar system and by extension the dollar’s world reserve status. In my recent articles ‘Lies And Distractions Surrounding The Diminishing Petrodollar’ and ‘The Economic End Game Continues,’ I point out that the death of the dollar as the premier petrocurrency is actually a primary goal for establishment globalists. Why? Because in an effort to achieve what they sometimes call the “global economic reset,” or the “new world order,” a more publicly accepted centralized global economy and monetary framework is paramount. And, this means the eventual implementation of a single world currency and a single global economic and political authority above and beyond the dollar system.

An armed conflict between Riyadh and Tehran would have a major impact on oil markets and the global economy. RT asked experts what a war between the two Middle East superpowers would mean for crude prices.

If a conflict happens, oil prices could increase 500 percent.

The chief-of-staff of Israel's military (IDF) told a Saudi newspaper that his country is ready to share intelligence on Iran with Riyadh, i24 News reports.

Israel has instructed its overseas embassies to lobby their respective host countries in support of Saudi Arabia and its apparent efforts to destabilise Lebanon, a recently leaked diplomatic cable shows.

The cable appears to be the first formal confirmation of rumours that Israel and Saudi Arabia are colluding to stoke tensions in the region.

Sent by the Israeli foreign ministry and disclosed by Israel’s Channel 10 news this week, the cable demanded that diplomats stress Iran and Hezbollah’s engagement in “regional subversion”.

That closely echoes accusations Riyadh levelled against Tehran and the Lebanese faction in recent days.

Analysts have noted that diplomatic moves by Israel to intervene directly in a seemingly internal Arab matter are “very rare”.

Yossi Alpher, a former adviser to Ehud Barak when he was Israeli prime minister, called the cable “extremely presumptuous”.

A Lebanese newspaper has published a secret undated letter from Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that puts forward a plan to normalize ties with Israel despite “risks” of a public backlash.

Lebanon’s al-Akhbar daily released the correspondence on Tuesday in the wake of reports that Riyadh and Tel Aviv are increasingly tilting toward one another in defiance of strong opposition among the Arabs to such rapprochement.

“I have the honor to submit to you the draft of the plan to establish relations between the kingdom and the State of Israel, based on the strategic partnership agreement with the United States of America, which was discussed with the secretary of state,” the letter reads.

Jubeir referred to Israel as a “state” while Saudi Arabia, along with other Arab League states, does not formally recognize the occupying entity.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has lashed out at Saudi officials for asking the Zionist regime of Israel to attack Lebanon, saying such moves are a shame for the Muslim world.
Speaking in a cabinet session on Wednesday, Rouhani slammed Saudi Arabia’s clear interference in the affairs of an independent country like Lebanon.

It is a very unprecedented event in the history that a country asks the prime minister of another country to resign and then introduces someone else as his replacement, the Iranian president added.

“In what position do you think you [Saudis] are? Why do you think you have the right to say a party should not be part of another country’s government? How far do you think money can work?”

"There is nothing to justify Premier Saad Hariri's non-return after 12 days, and therefore we consider him to be detained and held captive, what breaches the Vienna Convention and the Human Rights Charter," President Michel Aoun said on Wednesday.

The crisis in the Middle East is developing further.

In Saudi Arabia, the purge continued. According to Middle East Eye, senior Saudi figures were tortured and beaten in the purge under the banner of an anti-corruption movement, conducted by current Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman

He has overseen arrests of hundreds of people, including senior royals, ministers and tycoons, with some of them reportedly being tortured so badly during their arrest or subsequent interrogations that they required hospital treatment. Even Prince Bandar bin Sultan — Saudi Arabia’s most famous arms dealer, longtime former ambassador to the US, and recent head of Saudi intelligence — was reported to be among those detained as part of the purge.

If confirmed, this will be the most significant and high profile case of this purge, even above that of high profile billionaire investor Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, considering Bandar’s closeness to multiple US administrations.

Houthi officials told Al Jazeera two air strikes targeted Sanaa's international airport in the rebel-held capital early on Tuesday, making it unusable for aid flights and further complicating humanitarian efforts into the country.

"This attack is intended to cause maximum damage and deprive millions of Yemenis from receiving life-saving food and medicines," Mohammed, a Houthi official who declined to give his surname, said.

The Saudi-led coalition forced the closure of Sanaa airport in August 2016 to all but a few UN aid flights.

The Houthi-run General Authority for Civil Aviation said in a statement the air strike "led to the total destruction of the VOR/DME radio navigation system, taking it offline and thus halting the only flights at Sanaa airport - those of the UN and other international organisations delivering humanitarian assistance".

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met Lebanese Patriarch Bechara Boutros al Rahi, Tuesday, reported Saudi Press Agency.

Saudi king Salman bin Abdulaziz received earlier today the Lebanese Maronite Patriarch at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh on Tuesday, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

The meeting tackled brotherly relations between the Saudi kingdom and Lebanon and confirmed the importance of different religions and cultures in strengthening tolerance, rejecting violence, extremism and terrorism and achieving peace and security for the region’s people and the world.

A number of Saudi ministers including Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir and Gulf Affairs Minister Thamer al-Sabhan attended the reception.

Saudi Arabia is at risk of becoming a major destabilizing influence in the Arab world, German intelligence has warned.

Internal power struggles and the desire to emerge as the leading Arab power threaten to make the key Western ally a source of instability, according to the BND intelligence service.

“The current cautious diplomatic stance of senior members of the Saudi royal family will be replaced by an impulsive intervention policy,” a BND memo widely distributed to the German press reads.

Saudi Arabia has previously been accused of supplying arms and funding to jihadist groups fighting in Syria, including Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil).

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has vowed to return his country to "moderate Islam"; the pledge was followed by the dismissal and detainment of many of the country's high-profile princes and businessmen. Turkish energy analyst Dr Volkan Ozdemir commented that it is not about politics but rather about economics and petrodollars.

In his interview with Sputnik Turkiye, Volkan Ozdemir, the Chairman of Ankara-based EPPEN (Institute for Energy Markets and Policies), said that Riyadh is possibly cleaning out the opponents to the oil trade in US dollars and the changes the country is currently living through could be viewed as part of the US' attempt to fight against a strengthening China.

Fakenews:

Saudi Arabia ends its blockade of Yemen’s ports and airports – Daily Mail
Saudi-led coalition says will reopen Yemen ports – Anadolu
Yemeni ports to reopen for aid, says Saudi Arabia – Deutsche Welle
…
From the last link:

Saudi Arabia reacting to UN famine warnings says ports in Yemen it controls will reopen for aid deliveries. Riyadh shut them down last week after a missile attack blamed on Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

In this scenario, time is running out for Saudi Arabia's free-spending royalty and state - and for all the other free-spending oil exporters.

While there are numerous dynamics at work in the turmoil roiling Saudi Arabia and by extension, the Mideast, one way to cut to the chase is to follow the oil, follow the money. Correspondent B.D. recently posited a factor that has been largely overlooked in the geopolitical / fate-of-the-petrodollar discussions:

Perhaps the core dynamic is a technical one of diminished oil production. Here is Bart's commentary:

"I think the Saudis may be quickly running out of profitable oil to produce/export.

I think they tried to over-produce for a while to damage the competition... and they now have production issues resulting from that. (As has happened in the past)

Israel has instructed its overseas embassies to lobby their respective host countries in support of Saudi Arabia and its apparent efforts to destabilise Lebanon, a recently leaked diplomatic cable shows.

The cable appears to be the first formal confirmation of rumours that Israel and Saudi Arabia are colluding to stoke tensions in the region.

Sent by the Israeli foreign ministry and disclosed by Israel's Channel 10 news this week, the cable demanded that diplomats stress Iran and Hezbollah's engagement in "regional subversion".

That closely echoes accusations Riyadh levelled against Tehran and the Lebanese faction in recent days.

A week after the surprise resignation of Saad Hariri broadcast on Saudi-owned Al-Arabiyya from Riyadh, Lebanon has stopped asking where he is and has started demanding his release.

Lebanese President Michel Aoun called the circumstances of his disappearance "ambiguous and mysterious" and asked Saudi Arabia for clarification. In meetings with foreign ambassadors, he has gone further and declared Hariri "kidnapped".

But behind all this lies the stalemated Saudi war against wretched Yemen, the Arab world’s poorest, most backwards nation. Saudi Arabia has been heavily bombing Yemen for over two years, using US-supplied warplanes, munitions, including cluster bombs and white phosphorus, and US Air Force management. A Saudi blockade of Yemen, aided by the US, has caused mass starvation and epidemics such as cholera.

When I first explored Yemen, in the mid 1970’s, it was just creeping out of the 12th century AD. Today, it’s been bombed back into the 6th Century.

In spite of spending over $200 million daily (not including payoffs to `coalition’ members like Egypt) the Saudis are stuck in a stalemated conflict against Yemen’s Shia Houthi people. The US and Britain are cheerfully selling bombs and weapons to the Saudis. President Donald Trump has been lauding the destruction of Yemen because he mistakenly believes Iran is the mainstay of the anti-Saudi resistance.

Amira Bint Aidan Bin Nayef, the ex-wife of the Saudi Prince Al Waleed bin Talal (who was recently arrested in scope of the anti-corruption purges in the country), went on a rampage against the ruling Saudi regime in her exclusive statements to the French newspaper Le Monde, saying that those who accuse others of corruption and money laundering, are in fact highly corrupted themselves.

The princess said they’ve turned the city of Jeddah into a slave market where underage girls are being exploited for noisy sex parties involving drug and alcohol abuse.

The recent report of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the United Nations accused the Syrian government troops of being responsible for the Khan Sheikhoun chemical attack, without providing any evidence.

The fact that the OPCW has not properly acknowledged the possibility that sarin gaas was in the possession of the rebels in Khan Sheikhoun, on April 4, 2017, is yet another major issue with regard to the veracity of the OPCW report and its findings.

There have been multiple sources of evidence in the past that the terrorists in Syria were getting toxic substances the same way they were getting many of their arms - from Saudi Arabia through Turkey.

Holding back tears, Saad al-Hariri, who announced his resignation as Lebanon’s prime minister about a week ago while in Saudi Arabia, says he would return to his country within days; adds he will return to his post only if Hezbollah agrees to remain neutral on regional conflicts.

Egypt-based Ahram Online reports that the Arab League is set to hold an emergency meeting on Iran at Saudi Arabia’s request in order to discuss “Iranian interference” in the region at League headquarters in Cairo.

Early unconfirmed reports indicate the meeting could take place next Sunday.

According to Zerohedge, news of the Arab League extraordinary session comes as tensions are at breaking point as regional powers – especially Saudi Arabia and Israel – talk war against perceived Iranian expansion and domination in the Middle East.

Via Reuters…

Saudi Arabia has called for an urgent meeting of Arab League foreign ministers in Cairo next week to discuss Iran’s intervention in the region, an official league source told Egypt’s MENA state news agency on Sunday.

The call came after the resignation of Lebanon’s prime minister pushed Beirut back into the center of a rivalry between Sunni kingdom Saudi Arabia and Shi‘ite Iran and heightened regional tensions.

The United States has declined to comment on the status of Lebanon’s former prime minister who suddenly announced his resignation from the Saudi capital last week and has yet to return to Beirut.

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told a press briefing on Thursday that Chris Henzel, the US charge d’affaires in Riyadh, met Saad Hariri on Wednesday, but refused to comment on where the meeting took place or to elaborate on Hariri’s status.

“[The talks] were sensitive, private, diplomatic conversations,” Nauert said.

“We have seen him. In terms of the conditions of him being held or the conversations between Saudi Arabia and Prime Minister Hariri, I would have to refer you to the government of Saudi Arabia and also to Mr Hariri’s office.”

In Beirut’s southern suburbs, where buildings scarred with wars of old blend with posters of the latest dead, talk of another conflict has taken hold. A fight on a scale not seen before may be brewing, say locals like Hussein Khaireddine, a barber who says he and his family in the Shia suburb of Dahiyeh have grown used to tensions over decades.

“This one’s different,” he said. “It could lead to every valley and mountain top. And if it starts, it may not stop.”

The kingdom has mobilised its F-15 fighter jet fleet ito launch a military operation against the Iranian-backed terrorist militia of Hezbollah in Lebanon, regional news website The Baghdad Post reports.

The chairman of Yemen’s Supreme Revolutionary Committee has warned the Saudi-led coalition against launching a military assault on the country’s strategic western port city of Hudaydah, stressing the Yemeni forces’ response would be “unprecedented” in such a case.

How to make sense of this all?

An author on twitter by the handle Black Pigeon Speaks beautifully outlines today’s events in an easy to understand video titled: PAX AMERICANA, PetroDollar & the Coming CRISIS in the GULF…

The author of the video focuses on the Middle East and says a perfect storm is gathering upon the horizon, as the whole world is changing and the only way to change it for the better is to understand the world around you.

The video opens up with a brief understanding of the stunning purge in Saudi Arabia and how it has cleared any potential obstacles for King Salman’s son ascension to the throne.

This was done by a widespread arrest of royals, ministers and businessmen who have large sums of money and control key parts of the economy and parts of the military. Such an unorthodox move is bound to force internal conflict with-in the country that could very well spillover.

President Donald Trump has, since the beginning of his term, made aggressive opposition to Iran a key feature of his foreign policy. He has surrounded himself with anti-Iran hawks in the White House, and pledged to unilaterally “tear up” the nuclear deal agreed to by major world powers.

Saudi Arabia, a key U.S. proxy in the Middle East, has in recent weeks escalated its campaign against Iran. The Saudi monarchy pressured Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri to resign, and has been accused of holding him hostage. The kingdom then effectively declared war on Lebanon, in the name of countering Iran and its ally Hezbollah.

President Trump has praised Saudi Arabia’s belligerent intervention and foreign meddling, even while accusing Tehran of doing exactly what Riyadh is doing. The U.S. government is working very closely with the Saudi monarchy and Israel to, in Trump’s words, “counter the regime’s destabilizing activity.”

Supposed Al Qaeda links

Among the many articles I received this past week about the coup (and chaos) in Saudi Arabia, this one shared by Mr. V.T. is perhaps the one that gets down to the deep fissures that are beginning to show within the desert kingdom. Certainly the Saudis are not stupid: investments have allowed them to penetrate significant portions of the media, of technology and space, and so on, but the bottom line for the kingdom is oil, money, and a form of Islam that has remained extreme, though in the latter instance, we're seeing some (slow) signals of royally-approved change.

Nasrallah said that he personally believed that Hariri was forced to resign under Saudi pressure, but he assured everyone that Riyadh won't be successful in destabilizing Lebanon. President Aoun also chimed in on the same day to say that he won't act on Hariri's resignation until he returns to the country to explain himself. Although Hariri claimed that he stepped down while abroad because he feared that Iran was plotting to assassinate him back home, the Lebanese Armed Forces confirmed that they had no knowledge whatsoever about any potential threat to his life, throwing into question the former Prime Minister's entire narrative and adding credence to the suspicions that it was Saudi Arabia which is behind this political crisis.

SAUDI Arabia has scrambled its air force for strikes in Lebanon amid fears of a new war in the Middle East, according to reports.

Muhammad Bin-Salman’s domestic purge, including the detention of 11 princes and scores of businessmen and former officials under the banner of fighting corruption, is only a first phase. It seems to haves proceeded smoothly so far, without encountering any serious obstacles.

The man now has now brought the four major pillars of state power – the economy, the security and military forces, the media and the religious establishment (both the official Council of Senior Ulema and the unofficial ‘awakening’ clerics) — totally under his control. He has thrown all his opponents, and anyone who uttered any criticism of his rule, behind bars (or, in the case of the princes and other high-ranking figures, incarcerated them in a luxury hotel for now). The latest round of detentions is unlikely to be the last, for we are dealing here with a bulldozer that levels everything that stands in its path.

The leader of Lebanon's Hezbollah has accused Saudi Arabia of declaring war on his country, days after Lebanese PM Saad al-Hariri announced his resignation in the Saudi capital.

Hassan Nasrallah said Saudi Arabia was holding Mr Hariri against his will.

He also accused the Saudis of inciting Israel against Lebanon.

Japan said on Friday it would send one of its two big helicopter carriers, the largest warship in its fleet, along with two escorts to join three U.S. aircraft carriers for exercises in waters close to the Korean peninsula.

The Japanese ships Ise, Inazuma and Makinami will sail with the USS Ronald Reagan, USS Nimitz and USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Sea of Japan and East China Sea on Sunday, Japan’s Maritime Self Defence Force said in a press release.

It is the first time three American carriers have trained together in a decade. The show of force comes as U.S. President Donald Trump meets with regional leaders at an Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in Vietnam.

Trump is on a 12-day tour of Asia and has already made stops in Tokyo, Seoul and Beijing.

His administration has demanded that North Korea halt ballistic missile and nuclear tests. The naval exercise will be a potent reminder to Pyongyang of the U.S. ability to rapidly mobilize military force.

Recent events in the Mideast are rather disturbing even to people like me whose baseline position is that the professionals in both the Israeli and US military will reject war with Lebanon and its allies as unwinnable. But there are some disturbing events all over the Mideast that give us all reason for concern.

Even Dov Zakheim wrote an article in the Chicago Tribune speculating that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MSB), Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, and PM Netanyahu were plotting something. MSB had gone to Israel in September. Kushner has gone to Saudi Arabia 4 times. Kushner had been going to Israel but the cover story was that he was negotiating with the Palestinians. Some speculate that he wants the Palestinian leader Abbas to support Israel in a war with Lebanon.

Does Donald Trump want a new Middle East war, pitting Saudi Arabia against Iran in a conflict that could lay waste to the world's oil region and drag the United States into a conflict that would make the war in Iraq look like a minor skirmish? It sure looks like it.

Indeed, it's reasonable to suspect the Trump administration had a direct hand in Saudi Arabia's newfound muscular policies. Just a few days before all of this unfolded, Jared Kushner – Trump's son-in-law, who's been given a vast portfolio for Middle East policy – made an unannounced and still unexplained visit to Saudi Arabia, where he powwowed with Mohammed bin Salman. Kushner, 36, and MBS, 32, reportedly spent long hours, just the two of them, deep in conversation. "MBS is emboldened by strong support from President Trump and his inner circle, who see him as a kindred disrupter of the status quo — at once a wealthy tycoon and a populist insurgent," wrote David Ignatius in The Washington Post.

Growing complaints about the humanitarian catastrophe in Saudi-blockaded Yemen have led the Saudi government to announce that the al-Wadea border crossing is being reopened. Last week the Saudis closed all ports, airports, and land crossings.

Despite the reopening of Wadea, however, and the allowing of limited ships into southern Aden port, UN officials say that the Saudi-led coalition is still blocking all of their aid deliveries into the country, continuing the siege.

The near-term concern is for the lack of medicine, as northern Yemen is essentially out of everything at this point, and doctors say several hundred patients will die within the next week simply for lack of medicine.

The long-term prospects are even worse, with northern Yemen having an estimated six weeks of food left, and UN officials warning that “millions” could be killed by starvation if the blockade continues past that point, causing one of the worst famines in generations.

Former Lebanon Prime Minister Saad Hariri is being held in Saudi Arabia after his shock resignation, a Beirut official has claimed.

Officials in Lebanon are now reportedly planning to work with foreign states to secure the politician's return to the country in the latest twist in an extraordinary resignation.

Hariri resigned as prime minister on Saturday in a shock declaration read from Saudi Arabia, pitching Lebanon into deep political crisis and pushing the country back to the forefront of a regional struggle between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

'Lebanon is heading towards asking foreign and Arab states to put pressure on Saudi to release Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri,' said the official, who declined to be identified because the government had yet to declare the initiative.

Among those caught in the unprecedented arrests this week of top princes, wealthy businessmen and senior officials was the scion of one of Saudi Arabia’s most recognizable families: Bakr Binladin, the chairman of the kingdom’s pre-eminent contractor — and Osama bin Laden’s half-brother.

It was a stunning end to a decades-old alliance between the ruling Al Saud and Binladin families that saw the Saudi Binladin Group secure a near-monopoly on mega-expansion projects in Islam’s two holiest sites, Mecca and Medina, throughout the reigns of successive Saudi monarchs.

Saudi warplanes circled the Yemeni capital of Sanaa throughout the day, carrying out multiple attacks against the defense ministry and the surrounding area, with a number of the strikes hitting a residential area next to the ministry building.

Several homes were damaged in the strikes and one was totally destroyed, leaving only a crater. Despite this, locals could confirm no deaths from the strikes, though a substantial number of wounded were being rescued from the ruins.

These are the latest in a long series of attacks on the Yemeni capital during the Saudi war, and while the defense ministry has been targeted occasionally in the past, this appears to be the most concerted effort against the building.

Several detainees taken to hospital with torture injuries, while sources tell MEE scale of crackdown is bigger than authorities have revealed

Does Donald Trump want a new Middle East war, pitting Saudi Arabia against Iran in a conflict that could lay waste to the world's oil region and drag the United States into a conflict that would make the war in Iraq look like a minor skirmish? It sure looks like it.

Saudi Aramco has been preparing for a Western stock market listing for some time, and the US and UK have both gone to great lengths to court the company - now, Theresa May's government has signed off on a US$2 billion dollar loan guarantee for the firm.

On Friday, the "western press" started to set the stage for war between Lebanon (and Iran) and Saudi Arabia (and Israel).

Just a few hours later, a far more provocative report was published by the BBC, according to which Iran is establishing a permanent military base inside Syria, citing a Western intelligence source. The report, predictably, comes amid growing tensions over Iranian influence in Syria and across the region, and as the Saudi-Israel "alliance" is desperate to find a pretext to begin war.

As the BBC adds, the Iranian military is said to have established a compound at a site used by the Syrian army outside El-Kiswah, 14 km (8 miles) south of Damascus.

Needless to say, for Israel this would constitute the crossing of a "red line" by Iran: Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu recently warned that Iran wanted to establish itself militarily in Syria. "Israel will not let that happen," he said.

US President Donald Trump has swiftly followed up his Tuesday tweet in support of the great Saudi purge of the kingdom’s elite. A White House statement on Wednesday “welcomed” the allegation by Riyadh that Iran is supporting the Houthi militias of Yemen “including the supply of illegal arms such as ballistic missiles.”

In his tweet, Trump plunged straight into the heart of the power struggle in the House of Saud, saying “I have great confidence in King Salman and the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, they know exactly what they are doing … Some of those they are harshly treating have been “milking” their country for years!”

Iran manufactured the ballistic missile fired by Yemen’s Shiite rebels toward the Saudi capital and remnants of it bore “Iranian markings,” the top U.S. Air Force official in the Mideast said Friday, backing the kingdom’s earlier allegations.

The comments by Lt. Gen. Jeffrey L. Harrigian, who oversees the Air Force’s Central Command in Qatar, further internationalizes the yearslong conflict in Yemen — the Arab world’s poorest country.

Saudi Arabia long has accused Iran of giving weapons to the Shiite rebels known as Houthis and their allies, though Tehran has just as long denied supplying them. Riyadh quickly backed up Harrigian’s allegations in a statement to The Associated Press.

“There have been Iranian markings on those missiles,” Harrigian told journalists at a news conference in Dubai ahead of the Dubai Air Show. “To me, that connects the dots to Iran.”

There was no immediate reaction from Tehran.

Yemen is considered the world’s worst humanitarian disaster by the U.N.

Now, at this point, you may be thinking, “This is shocking, but ultimately not surprising. The Middle East is a chaotic and violent place, and it has been for some time. What’s happening in Yemen is an extension of the broader Sunni vs. Shiite conflict, and while it’s incredibly tragic, this is a regional conflict that we as Americans obviously can’t solve.”

True enough, but here’s the thing: That Saudi-led coalition is made possible by Washington. The blockade is happening with our government’s endorsement, and the entire Saudi intervention is happening with our government’s material and intelligence support. Washington is selling the Saudis weapons, refueling their bombers, planning their flights and using our Navy to bolster the blockade in Yemen’s ports. Ending U.S. support wouldn’t magically make Yemen peaceful, but it would let in the food and medicine ordinary people desperately need.

FRENCH President Emmanuel Macron held hastily scheduled talks in Riyadh with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman amid rising tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, notably over Lebanon and Yemen.

Anti-corruption raids in Saudi Arabia continue, the number of arrested persons exceed 200 people. They are accused of laundering and withdrawing more than $ 100 billion from the country.

However, according to many experts, the ultimate goal of apprehending the elite of Saudi Arabia is not stopping anti-corruption activities, but fighting those who can prevent Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman from taking the throne of the King of Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman sees peace deal as key to building regional alliance to confront Iran, officials and diplomats tell MEE