Al Saud after eliminating Palestinian cause: Hezbollah official

The deputy secretary general of Lebanon’s Hezbollah resistance movement says Saudi Arabia is seeking to eliminate the Palestinian cause through normalizing ties with Israel.

Sheikh Naim Qassim made the comments at a ceremony commemorating the first anniversary of the Riyadh regime’s execution of prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr, in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, on Wednesday.

Qassim described Sheikh Nimr as a supporter of Palestine, resistance and Islamic values, saying he was killed due to his opposition to oppression.

The Saudi clergyman had accused Riyadh of being the major cause of the crisis in the region, and at the same time not tolerating others’ views and maintaining a tyranny at home and interfering in the domestic affairs of regional states, Qassim added.

Saudi Arabia executed Sheikh Nimr on January 2, 2016 in defiance of international calls to release him. The highly respected cleric was charged with undermining the kingdom’s security, making anti-government speeches, and defending political prisoners. Nimr had denied the accusations.