Mikati Raises Ceiling on His Positions to Resolve Crisis with Gulf States

Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri holding talks. (Lebanese Parliament)
Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri holding talks. (Lebanese Parliament)
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Mikati Raises Ceiling on His Positions to Resolve Crisis with Gulf States

Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri holding talks. (Lebanese Parliament)
Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri holding talks. (Lebanese Parliament)

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati threw the ball into the court of “Hezbollah” and the “Marada Movement” by raising the ceiling on his positions and renewing the call for the resignation of Information Minister George Kordahi.

Mikati reaffirmed his determination to deal with the issue of relations with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Gulf states according to sound rules.

“Whoever thinks that disruption is the solution is wrong,” stressed the premier while pointing out to unruly elitism the government was exposed to from within.

Mikati also voiced his rejection of ministers intervening in the work of the country’s justice system.

Beirut-based TV station al-Mayadeen quoted Kordahi as saying that he will neither resign nor go back on his controversial position. This has opened the possibility of dismissing Kordahi to discussion.

On Thursday, intensified meetings were held among Lebanese officials to try and find a solution for the crisis with Gulf states.

Mikati, for his part, met with both President Michel Aoun and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri. Also, Berri met with Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib.

“I placed His Excellency (Aoun) in the atmosphere that surrounded my visit to Glasgow and my meetings with various international bodies. I discussed with him ways to get out of the current crisis with Saudi Arabia and Gulf states, and we agreed on a road map,” said Mikati after meeting with the president.

Sources familiar with the meetings told Asharq Al-Awsat that “the options are now known, and they include either Kordahi’s resignation or dismissal.

“There will be no cabinet session before this matter is resolved,” the same sources noted.

“When we formed this government after months of disruption, delay, and missed opportunities, we announced that we are on a quick rescue mission to advance cooperation with international bodies and the International Monetary Fund, in addition to holding parliamentary elections,” said Mikati.

“We believed that the painful reality that our country is experiencing would push everyone to let go of personal interests and actively participate in the rescue mission, but this, unfortunately, did not happen,” he added.



Human Rights Watch Says Houthi Attacks on Red Sea Vessels Amount to War Crimes 

Houthi supporters hold up weapons during a protest against the US and Israel, in Sanaa, Yemen, 18 July 2025. (EPA)
Houthi supporters hold up weapons during a protest against the US and Israel, in Sanaa, Yemen, 18 July 2025. (EPA)
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Human Rights Watch Says Houthi Attacks on Red Sea Vessels Amount to War Crimes 

Houthi supporters hold up weapons during a protest against the US and Israel, in Sanaa, Yemen, 18 July 2025. (EPA)
Houthi supporters hold up weapons during a protest against the US and Israel, in Sanaa, Yemen, 18 July 2025. (EPA)

The Iranian-backed Houthi militias in Yemen attacked two ships, the Magic Seas and the Eternity C, on July 6 and 9, killing some of their crew and detaining others, Human Rights Watch said in a statement on Wednesday.

The militants have been launching missile and drone attacks against commercial and military ships in the region in what the group’s leadership has described as an effort to end Israel’s offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

HRW, however, said the Houthis’ attacks on the two vessels “violates the laws of war applicable to the armed conflict between the Houthis and Israel.”

“The Houthis have sought to justify unlawful attacks by pointing to Israeli violations against Palestinians,” said Niku Jafarnia, HRW’s Yemen and Bahrain researcher.

Jafarnia called for the Houthis to end all attacks on ships that don’t take part in the Israeli-Hamas war and immediately release detained crew members.