Saad Hariri: loose witness in MBS prosecution
The Lebanese prime minister now has one on the crown prince; Mohammed bin Salman goes after his inner circle; Netanyahu needs Putin for possible deal on the Golan.
Hariri’s liberation
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s come-uppance over the murder of Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul is a windfall for Saad Hariri, who is on the verge of forming a new government in Lebanon.
Last month we wrote that Hariri has “felt the burn from being too close to the Mohammed bin Salman flame” and that the delay in forming a new Lebanese government might have been because Hariri was “waiting for a call from Riyadh” that might not be coming.
Following the Khashoggi murder, that call is definitely not coming. Mohammed’s plight has been a kind of liberation for Hariri, who we wrote last year was “his own witness in a court of conscience” following his captivity under the crown prince. Hariri now has one over his former patron and tormenter. The prime minister, who has kept his own counsel on the details of his captivity until now, could be a potential witness against Mohammed by testifying about the crown prince's previous behavior.
