Iran says ambassador to Lebanon to remain despite expulsion order

Iran on Monday said its ambassador to Lebanon would remain in the country despite being declared a persona non grata and ordered to leave.

“Our ambassador, following remarks made by relevant Lebanese bodies and the conclusions reached, will continue his mission in Beirut and he is still there,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei in a weekly press briefing, adding that Iran’s embassy in Beirut remains “operational”.

Lebanon’s foreign minister, Youssef Raggi, had declared the envoy, Mohammad Reza Shibani, persona non grata and ordered him to leave the country by Sunday.

The trigger for the stand-off was Shibani’s statement, made days before the government’s crackdown, that any Lebanese effort to disarm Hezbollah should be reversed – comments widely interpreted as blatant interference in domestic affairs.

All of this is unfolding against the backdrop of Israel’s ongoing campaign against Hezbollah inside Lebanon, heightening the urgency.

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