From the Liveblog of
Sunday, June 28, 2020
Lebanon’s FM summons US envoy over Hezbollah criticism
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleBEIRUT — Lebanon’s foreign minister has summoned the US ambassador to Beirut over comments she made recently in which she criticized the Hezbollah terror group, state-run National News Agency reports.
The agency gives no further details other than saying the meeting between Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti and Ambassador Dorothy Shea is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon.
Local media says the minister will tell the ambassador that according to the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, an ambassador has no right to interfere in the internal affairs of another country and should not incite the Lebanese people against one another.
Yesterday, a Lebanese judge banned local and foreign media outlets in the country from interviewing the US ambassador for a year saying that her criticism of Hezbollah was seditious and a threat to social peace.
The judge’s ruling came a day after Shea told Saudi-owned TV station Al-Hadath that Washington has “great concerns” over Hezbollah’s role in the government.
The move was harshly criticized by many in Lebanon, which enjoyed one of the more freer media landscapes in the Arab world. Others, however, criticized Shea for comments deemed an interference in Lebanon’s internal affairs
Since the ban by the judge was imposed, several local TV stations aired fresh comments from Shea in which she described the judge’s decision as “unfortunate.” She added that a senior Lebanese government official, whom she did not name, apologized to her.
— Agencies
The Times of Israel Community.