Bilal Erdogan, floated as father’s possible successor, visits Lebanon: What to know
Bilal Erdogan, the son of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is in Lebanon for a three-day visit that will include meetings with officials and religious leaders, as well as stops in Sunni-majority cities.
BEIRUT — Bilal Erdogan, the younger son of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and a potential successor to his father, arrived in Beirut on Thursday for a high-profile, three-day visit as Ankara seeks to expand its clout in Lebanon amid Iran’s longstanding ties with Hezbollah and Israel’s expanding military role in the country.
What happened: Erdogan met with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun at the presidential palace in Baabda upon his arrival. According to a presidency statement, Aoun expressed his country’s interest in expanding bilateral cooperation and partnerships in the investment, reconstruction, trade, tourism and infrastructure fields.
For his part, Erdogan affirmed Turkey’s support for the Lebanese authorities’ efforts to extend state sovereignty through the armed forces across the country.
Erdogan later met with Lebanon’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Latif Derian at Dar al-Fatwa. Speaking to reporters, he said Turkey will always stand by the Lebanese people. “We want to see a prosperous and stable Lebanon,” he added.
