Asharq Al Awsat:

Beirut: Youssef Diab

Tensions between Lebanon and Iran have reached unprecedented levels, reflecting a shift in how Beirut views its ties with Tehran, especially when it comes to Hezbollah’s arsenal and Iranian meddling in Lebanese internal affairs.

The tensions are not just playing out in the media, but in official positions taken by Lebanon’s top officials.

The latest example was Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi’s announcement last week that he was declining an invitation by his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araqchi to visit Tehran. He instead proposed meeting in a neutral country.

An official Lebanese source told Asharq Al-Awsat that Raggi’s position does not stem from his personal views, but from a “clear political stance that Lebanese-Iranian relations cannot go back on track if they are not based on equality.

Iran must only limit its dealings in Lebanon to the state and no other party, namely Hezbollah, it added.

The root of the crisis lies in Iran’s absolute support for Hezbollah and how Tehran views it as an extension of its Revolutionary Guards Corps, an entity that exists parallel to the Lebanese state and even violates its jurisdiction in taking decisions of war and peace.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source warned that Iran maintaining this position towards Lebanon, “complicates the situation inside Lebanon and exposes the country to a new war with Israel.”

Lebanon cannot withstand such a new conflict, it added.

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