Lebanon's top Shi'ite Muslim cleric sharply criticized Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni's visit to Qatar and said Tuesday that her comments about Hezbollah and Hamas reflect Israel's "brazenness and arrogance." Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah issued a statement calling Livni's trip and her remarks "a big insult to all Arabs and Muslims."
Such trips are designed to drive a wedge between Arab countries willing to make peace with Israel, and those who are not, the statement said. "The visits...are not only meant to normalize (Israel's ties with Arab countries)...but are also designed to pave the way for an Arab-Israeli alliance against other Arabs and Muslims who refuse to let the usurper entity (Israel) liquidate the Palestinian people," Fadlallah was quoted as saying.