by aljazeera.com — In a television interview on Monday, Wehbe Lebanese Foreign Minister, Top diplomat appeared to blame Gulf nations for the rise of the ISIL (ISIS) armed group in the Levant region. “Those countries of love, friendship and fraternity, they brought us Islamic State,” he told Alhurra, without naming the countries. Wehbe made the comment during a verbal duel with a Saudi guest on the show, who blamed Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun for “handing over” his country to the Lebanese Shia movement, Hezbollah, which is backed by Riyadh’s rival Tehran. The Saudi foreign ministry strongly condemned Wehbe’s “insulting” remarks, saying they were “inconsistent with the simplest diplomatic norms”. The ministry “summoned the Lebanese ambassador to express the kingdom’s rejection and denunciation” of his comments, said the statement released by the official Saudi Press Agency. Wehbe apologised on Tuesday, saying he did not mean to offend “brotherly Arab countries”. In a separate statement, Nayef al-Hajraf, secretary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), demanded a formal apology from Wehbe to Gulf states for his “unacceptable” remarks.

by alarabiya.net — Joseph Haboush — Lebanon’s top diplomat is expected to step down from his position this week, a senior Foreign Ministry official said late Tuesday, hours after the minister accused Gulf countries of supporting ISIS in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. Charbel Wehbe, who is currently the foreign minister in a caretaker capacity, unleashed a reckless diatribe against Saudi Arabia and the Gulf during a televised interview with Al-Hurra on Monday.. Following public backlash from Lebanese officials, politicians and the public, Wehbe will now “probably announce that he’s stepping down,” the ministry official told Al Arabiya English. Beirut has already been reeling from strained ties with the Gulf due to Hezbollah’s increased influence and role in state institutions following the election of President Michel Aoun, an ally of the Iran-backed group, in 2016.

Apart from his accusations, which he did not provide any evidence for, Wehbe also used racist terms to describe the people of Saudi Arabia. On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Kuwait summoned Lebanon’s ambassadors to their respective countries due to Wehbe’s remarks. The Gulf Cooperation Council demanded a formal apology from Wehbe for his comments. Aoun appointed Wehbe to be the foreign minister after Nassif Hitti resigned a day before the catastrophic Beirut blast due to his frustration with Hassan Diab’s government. A week after succeeding Hitti, Wehbe became a caretaker minister following the resignation of Diab. It is unclear who will succeed Wehbe, who was the diplomatic adviser of Aoun before being tapped to head Lebanon’s foreign policy.