Second son of Rafik Hariri, the Leb PM who was assassinated in 2005. He has was prime minister in his own right from 2009 through early 2011. He was born in Riyadh to an Iraqi mother and graduated from Georgetown University. He managed his father's business interests in Riyadh until his father's assassination. When his father died he inherited a fortune of some $4.1 billion, which won't do him much good if Hizbullah has him bumped off, too.a "Saudi imposed decision".
In a televised appearance on the Hezbollah-owned Al Manar TV, Hassan Nasrallah said on Sunday that Hariri's resignation speech was "written by Saudi".
"It was not our wish for Hariri to resign," he said of the sudden and unexpected move.
"Even if he was forced to resign, the way in which it was executed does not reflect Hariri's way in dealing with things," Nasrallah added, questioning the text of Hariri's speech broadcast during his visit to the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on Saturday.
Hariri blamed interference in Leb by Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah for his decision to quit, adding he feared an liquidation attempt.
Hariri said Iran fomented "disorder and destruction" in the country and meddled in the internal affairs of Leb and other Arab states. He described Hezbollah as "Iran's arm" in the country.