According to the pan-Arab daily Asharq Al-Awsat, the leader of the Future parliamentary bloc blamed the Hezbollah militia for hurting Lebanon’s interests, and bidding the Iranian regime’s welfare instead. Mr. Siniora claimed that Hezbollah transformed the country into a “body without a head,” and told the newspaper that the ongoing vacuum in the presidency “has created a huge void that allowed Iranian ties with Hezbollah to tarnish Beirut’s relations with Arab countries, especially Saudi Arabia.”

As a way to remedy this void, Mr. Siniora called on Tehran to “distance itself from interfering in the internal affairs of Arab countries.”

Iran’s “systematic” intervention in Lebanon through its favorite militia significantly weakened existing institutions, the former premier insisted, which created a “major political setback” that naturally affected the country’s established ties with leading Arab countries.