Saad Hariri

Hariri was first elected prime minister from 9 November 2009 until 13 June 2011.

On 12 January 2011, minutes after Hariri posed for pictures with President Barack Obama in the Oval Office, the opposition parties resigned from his unity government cabinet, causing its collapse. The withdrawal of Hezbollah and its allies was due to political tensions arising from investigations into the assassination of Rafic Hariri.[30] Hezbollah operatives had been accused of assassinating Rafic Hariri.[30]

Hariri continued on for four months as caretaker Prime Minister. The new Lebanese government was formed on 13 June 2011 and headed by Najib Mikati. Mikati created an 8 March-led government coalition.[30]

On 12 December 2012, Syria issued a warrant for the arrest of Hariri, Future bloc deputy Okab Sakr and Free Syrian Army official Louay Almokdad on charges of arming and providing financial support for Syrian opposition groups. Hariri released a statement in response, describing Bashar al-Assad as a "monster".[31]

Following more than two years of deadlock in electing a president, Michel Aoun was elected. Shortly after, Aoun signed a decree appointing Hariri as prime minister for the second time[32] and he took office on 18 December 2016.[32]

On 4 November 2017, in a televised statement from Saudi Arabia, Hariri tendered his resignation from office, citing Iran's and Hezbollah's political over-extension in the Middle East region and fears of assassination.[33][34] Iran vehemently rejected Saad Hariri's remarks and called his resignation part of a plot by the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia to heighten Middle Eastern tensions.[35] The Lebanese Army responded with a statement that intelligence in its possession in addition to ongoing arrests and investigations had not revealed "the presence of any plan for assassinations in the country."[36]

Most Iran-leaning or Shia-aligned Lebanese groups, including Hezbollah, were among the first to accuse Saudi Arabia of holding Hariri hostage; Hariri's associates and Saudi officials subsequently denied this. Several Lebanese commentators poked fun at the released pictures of Hariri in Saudi Arabia for their apparent similarity to those taken of hostages. Anti-Hezbollah blogger Michael Young stated that he did not think Hariri was an actual hostage of the Saudi regime, but that the situation confirmed Hariri's close ties with them. However, Lebanese-American political scientist As'ad AbuKhalil claimed that the Saudis had jailed and physically restrained and assaulted Hariri before ordering him to broadcast his resignation.[37] In November, it was announced that Hariri was on his way from Saudi Arabia to the United Arab Emirates. Hariri's own party's media outlet reported that he would then move on to Bahrain and later back to Beirut, but both of these trips were subsequently cancelled and he was sent back to Riyadh.[38][39][40] Hariri's allies, who usually aligned with Saudi Arabia, then joined the other parties in their concern for Hariri's freedom being limited by Saudi Arabia. The majority of the Lebanese government requested his return.[41][42] On 11 November, Lebanese President Michel Aoun released the statement: "Lebanon does not accept its prime minister being in a situation at odds with international treaties and the standard rules in relations between states."[43]

Later in November, Hariri left for France to meet French President Emmanuel Macron. Macron specifically requested he take his wife and children along with him. He was able to make such a request due to Hariri's French citizenship.[5] Hariri declared in Beirut on 21 November that he had suspended his resignation. He stated that President Michel Aoun had asked him to "put it on hold ahead of further consultations".[44] He refused to talk about what happened in Saudi Arabia and claimed that events will remain undisclosed.[45] He rescinded his resignation on 5 December and stated that all members of the government had agreed to stay out of conflicts in Arab countries.[46]

In mid-October 2019, a popular protest movement began calling for increased accountability and transparency in politics. His government was widely viewed as corrupt by the Lebanese people.[47] On 29 October, Hariri offered his resignation as a concession, saying "This is in response to the will and demand of the thousands of Lebanese demanding change".[47] The following day, President Michel Aoun accepted the resignation but requested that Hariri remain in office till a successor was appointed.[48][49] Hassan Diab, the former education minister, was appointed to the role on 21 January 2020.[50] On 10 August 2020, Diab resigned in the aftermath of the Beirut explosion due to mounting political pressure and anger at the Lebanese government for their failure to prevent the disaster, exacerbated by existing political tensions and upheavals within the country.[51]

After the resignation of Diab, Hariri and the Prime Ministers' club favored the Lebanese ambassador to Germany Mustapha Adib to be the next Prime Minister. Although he was appointed after being nominated by 90 of 120 MPs on 30 August, he stepped down three weeks later after failing to form a new cabinet.[52][53]

On 8 October, Hariri announced in an interview that he is "definitely a candidate" for the position, and called other political parties not to waste what is called the "French Initiative".[54] On 22 October, Saad Hariri was reappointed as Prime Minister.[12] He was backed by his Future Movement, PSP and Amal Movement, receiving 65 votes, 4 less than his predecessor Diab, while Hezbollah along with major Christian parties, Free Patriotic Movement and Lebanese Forces, did not endorse him.[55]

After 1,096 days and 18 meetings with Aoun, he has yet failed to form a government.[56] He met with Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Turkey in January 2021,[57] Abdel Fattah el-Sisi in Egypt in February,[58] and visited Mohammed bin Zayed in United Arab Emirates several times.[59] Hariri has been criticized for spending a great amount of time outside Lebanon, while the absence of a government worsened the financial crisis in the country,[60] and his trips were seen as an attempt to compensate the support he lacked from Saudi Arabia.[61][62]

On 16 March, the exchange rate reached 15,000 Lebanese pounds to the dollar.[63] The next day, Aoun called Hariri to meet him.[64] After the meeting, Hariri announced that the government could be formed soon.[65] However, on 29 March, he claimed that Aoun proposed a formation that included the blocking third for FPM, which he rejected, and released another formation consisting of 18 ministers to the media.[66] On 15 July, he decided to step down from his designation.[67][68]

On 24 January 2022 Hariri announced his withdrawal from Lebanese politics and that he would not run in the 2022 general elections.[69] He also called on the Future Movement to follow suit and not run in the upcoming parliamentary elections nor nominate anyone to run on its behalf.[70]