Saad Hariri is the Lebanese Prime Minister, billionaire and revolutionary, who earned himself political points in his time by fighting Syrian influence in his country. He became the continuation of the work of his father, Rafik Hariri, who was killed under mysterious circumstances that did not exclude the involvement of the Lebanese and Syrian secret services.
From the superintendent to the president
Saad Ad Din Rafik Al Hariri was born in 1970 far from his homeland - in the capital of Saudi Arabia, Er Riyadh, where his father's main business assets were based. Saad became the second son in the family of Rafik Hariri and Nidal al Bustani, a native of Iraq.
The heir to the business empire received an education corresponding to the status, studying at Georgetown University, where he carefully studied business management. Returning to sunny Arabia in 1992, Saad Hariri began working at Saudi Oger, a construction company founded by his father.
The harsh Lebanese patriarch reasonably reasoned that his son should begin his career from the lowest levels, and in the first years Saad worked as a simple foreman, supervised relations with subcontractors.
Hariri Jr. passed the test for solvency flawlessly, and in 1996, a happy father appointed him CEO of Saudi Oger, who still remains one of the largest contractors in the Arab East with an annual turnover of two billion dollars and a staff of several tens of thousands of people. The founder of the business empire himself decided to try his hand at politics.
Father's successor
The young and ambitious heir zealously set about developing Saudi Oger. According to him, he had to break a lot of conservative and outdated norms and rules that have developed in the company. Saad Hariri was not afraid to enter into alliances with other corporations, began to invest in new economic spheres, expanded the geographical boundaries of Saudi Oger's influence. As a result, large telecommunications companies with influence throughout the Middle East became subsidiaries of the original corporation.
However, soon the resident of Saudi Arabia had to return to his roots and recall the existence of Lebanon on the world map. The reason for this was the death of his father, Rafik Hariri, who stirred up Lebanese society.
It was decided at the family council of a large family that it was Saad Hariri, the youngest son of the murdered politician, who would raise the political banner of his father after Bahá'a’s refusal to contact the authorities. However, there was an alternative version, according to which Saad was chosen due to his charisma and more developed communication skills.
"Cedar" revolution
So, after blessing the family council, Saad Hariri first creates his own movement - “Movement for the Future.” At first, the novice stands did not try to impress the public with originality, relying solely on the authority of the murdered father, promising to continue his work.
The murder of an influential politician caused a strong public outcry. A special UN commission was established to investigate the circumstances of the death of Rafik Hariri. The result of the work of the international brigade was the arrest of several influential officials of the Lebanese secret services. In addition, a serious suspicion of organizing a crime fell on Syria.
However, even before the commission began to work, the society had already blamed the Syrian special services and their Lebanese accomplices in power. The results of the investigation only warmed up the degree of discontent, and the people came to mass demonstrations. The main demands of the people were the withdrawal of Syrian troops and the resignation of President Emil Lahoud, a protege of Syria.
Elections
An explosion of public discontent, called the Cedar Revolution, led to the forced withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon and a reboot in power. Saad Hariri, as one of the winners, began to prepare for the 2005 parliamentary elections. For the first time in many years, elections were not held under the influence of Syria.
Among other Arab states, Lebanon on the world map is distinguished by a very peculiar, complex electoral system based on the confessional diversity of a small republic.
Each of the religious communities - Shiites, Sunnis, Christians, nominates a certain number of candidates for parliament, in connection with which the importance of various blocs and alliances increases.
The most important ally of Saad Hariri was Walid Jumblat, leader of the progressive socialist Druze party. Thanks to joint efforts, the Hariri Martyrs coalition bloc won the majority of seats in parliament, but a large share went to the pro-Syrian Hezbollah.
The influence of external forces
Despite winning the parliamentary elections, Saad Hariri did not achieve a two-thirds constitutional majority that would allow his supporters to choose a convenient president. The incumbent head of state, Lahoud, blocked the Lebanese billionaire as chairman of the cabinet, as a result of which he had to agree to a compromise figure in the person of Fuad Sinior.
The first years after the revolution were turbulent times. Regular rocket attacks by Hezbollah’s military wing on Israeli territory provoked an Israeli invasion of Lebanon. The leaders of the Arab Republic rallied in difficult times, forgetting about their disagreements, and began to unanimously demand the cessation of the military operation of Tel Aviv.
The Israelis were in a paradoxical situation. Winning military victories with ease, they were forced to submit to the demands of the world community and leave Lebanon, having suffered a crushing political defeat.
Government crisis
The leaders of Hezbollah, whose popularity jumped up, correctly understood the new alignment. The radicals demanded more power from Hariri, to which the indignant politician refused. A tremendous government crisis erupted, President Lahoud resigned and left the country.
Demonstrations shook Beirut again, this time with Shiite supporters who demanded more power. Saad Hariri had no choice but to start negotiations, as a result of which a compromise president in the person of Michel Suleiman was elected and a coalition government was formed. Moreover, the opposition Shiites of Hezbollah had the right to veto any decision of the Prime Minister.
Head of the government
In 2009, Saad Hariri again won the parliamentary elections in Lebanon, becoming the main candidate for the post of cabinet head. Complicated and lengthy negotiations with Hezbollah began, after which President Michel Suleiman appointed Saad as Prime Minister of Lebanon and instructed to form a government. This was possible only on the second attempt, after which Hariri became the head of the coalition cabinet.
It was extremely difficult for a pro-Western Lebanese politician to work on the same team with the pro-Iranian and pro-Syrian-minded representatives of the radical Hezbollah, whose militants were well-armed and represented a force equal to the Lebanese army itself.
However, for two years, Saad Hariri successfully finalized, after which a new government crisis erupted. Hezbollah representatives unanimously left the government, accusing Saad of inability to take action, after which a new coalition government was formed, headed by Najib Mukatti.
In power again
In 2012, Saad Hariri was accused by Syria of supplying the Syrian opposition with weapons, as a result of which an arrest warrant was issued for the politician. The outraged Saad did not remain in debt, calling Bashar al-Assad a monster.
In 2016, Lebanese President Michel Aoun invited the former rival to again head the government, to which he responded with consent.
Saad Hariri, whose personal life is carefully hidden, is married to an Arabian beauty, representing an influential Syrian clan - Lara al Azem.