Alwaght- While after election of a new president and formation of a new government the Lebanese politicians were expected to focus on their main mission of ending the Israeli occupation in southern Lebanon, they are instead heading to internal division, a path favorable to the enemy.
On Thursday night, after news reports said that the Lebanese government unilaterally canceled an expected flight from Tehran to Beirut, hundreds of Lebanese people took to the streets protesting the move. These protests have been repeated in recent months for similar incidents like the restrictions for the Iranian diplomats at the airport.
The story started when Iran's Imam Khomeini International Airport announced the flights to Beirut have been suspended since Thursday since the Lebanese aviation organization had not issued authorization for them.
After this action by the Lebanese government, dozens of Lebanese passengers were stranded in Tehran for hours, and the Lebanese government finally asked its citizens to travel to Beirut with Qatar Airways flights. After the cancellation of the Tehran-Beirut flight and the protests of the Lebanese people against this government action, the Lebanese aviation organization said in a statement that the reason for the changes in the flight schedule was to protect the health of passengers.
At the same time, the Lebanese people went extremely angry and launched extensive protests in the streets. After the cancellation of the flight permit of the Iranian plane carrying Lebanese pilgrims to Beirut, the protesters completely blocked Salim Road, one of the main routes leading to Rafic Hariri Airport. With slogans such as "We will not let the Americans rule us," the protesters declared this action as the result of foreign pressure.
Hezbollah also said in a statement: "The Lebanese government must accept its responsibilities to end this situation, the enemy should not think that it is free to commit any aggression and violation of sovereignty."
According to Lebanese media reports, the country's new Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has asked the Minister of Public Works to not allow Iranian planes to land at Beirut Airport until a decision is made on Monday (February 11).
In response to the incident, Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, stated that they are working to restore flights to normal and that Iran Air flights will operate this week and next. Amani added that the cancellation of these flights has led to various interpretations, including that the Lebanese government may be trying to prevent Iranians from attending the funeral of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.
This is not the first time that such an approach has been taken against Iranian flights to Beirut. On January 3, passengers on a flight from Tehran to Beirut were subjected to intensive body searches and unusual baggage checks upon arrival at Rafic Hariri Airport. According to the report, Beirut airport security officials were also trying to search the baggage of the Iranian diplomatic delegation, which was met with resistance from diplomats, leading to tension.
Israeli footprints in the crisis
While the main reason for this decision has not been officially announced by Lebanese authorities, some analysts believe it is the result of foreign political pressure, and this has caused concern and discontentment among travelers and citizens of both countries.
The Lebanese government’s order to cancel Tehran-Beirut flights came after Israeli military spokesman Avichai Adraee claimed on X on Wednesday night that “Beirut airport is being used to transfer money to Hezbollah via Iranian planes.”
Also Israeli daily Jerusalem Post claimed that this decision was made following Israeli warnings to Lebanese authorities. In this regard, a Lebanese citizen stranded at Tehran airport sent a message to the Lebanese government stating that “we have sweets and clothes in our bags,” urging the presidents, parliament, and government to resolve this issue as soon as possible.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his hardline ministers have always claimed that Iran is trying to strengthen Hezbollah and undermine the security of the occupied territories by sending weapons and money to the resistance movement.
Aim to deal blows to Hezbollah
Since the Lebanese government’s actions in these conditions are not unrelated to the developments in the region, experts believe that Beirut’s moves are being carried out with specific aims.
In this connection, Jaafar Ghanadbashi, an expert on West Asian affairs, said in an interview with Alwaght: “The effort is to cut off the relationship between Hezbollah and Iran in order to weaken Hezbollah. Because the Zionist leaders claim that the continuation of the relationship between Iran and Hezbollah means that this movement will become stronger and its lost forces will be revived, which is a threat to Israel. Given the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government and the cutting off of land routes for sending aid to Hezbollah, the Zionists are now trying to control the air routes and prevent the relationship between Tehran and the resistance, but it must be said that Lebanon is not a closed country that they can cut off the relationship between Hezbollah and Tehran by controlling the air routes.”
Asked if the Lebanese government made a deal with the Israelis and Americans about the cancelation of Tehran-Beirut flights, Mr Ghanadbashi held that this action was taken "at the behest" of the US, and the US embassy in Beirut has been implementing this scenario for months and putting pressure on the Beirut authorities. Even the Israeli regime's attacks on Lebanon were part of Washington's strategy to weaken Hezbollah.
This is while, according to the ceasefire agreements, the occupying army should withdraw from southern Lebanon by February 18, but Nabih Berri, the speaker of the Lebanese parliament, said on Friday that the Americans had informed him that the Israeli military would remain in five areas in southern Lebanon, something strongly opposed by factions close to Hezbollah. In this regard, Nabih Berri, who is also leader of Hezbollah-aligned Amal Movement , said: "I informed the Americans on behalf of myself, the president and the prime minister that we are firmly opposed to this issue and that if the occupiers continues to be present in Lebanon, the responsibility to confront it will lie with the Lebanese state and the army will fully play its role in southern Litani."
It seems that the US and the Zionist regime are trying to use the pressure lever of the continued occupation to exert concessions from the Lebanese government and cut off ties with Iran, and, as they claim, block the path to providing aid to Hezbollah. Therefore, it is not unlikely that Nawaf Salam will cancel Iranian flights to Beirut in return for guarantees for Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon.
The Donald Trump administration recently sent its representative to Lebanon, telling the country’s new officials that Washington does not want Hezbollah to be part of Lebanon’s political and security framework. The US and Israel want Hezbollah to be disarmed and Lebanon’s security to be handed over to the country’s army so that it can guarantee the security of the occupied territories in the absence of a strong defense force on the northern front.
Fear of a magnificent funeral for Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah
Having in mind that February 24 is the date set for funeral of Hezbollah Leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the cancelation of flights from Tehran to Beirut is not unrelated to the funeral, said Ghanadbashi.
"The Lebanese government intends to prevent the magnificent funeral of the martyr Nasrallah with these obstacles. Since Hezbollah is linked to the people and all political and ethnic groups in Lebanon and is very popular among the Lebanese, and given the history of the resistance forces' sacrifice in defending the country and citizens, it is not possible to try to remove it from the political and security structures. The presence of people in the streets in response to the Lebanese government's flight suspension showed how powerful Hezbollah is and can unleash a huge popular wave, and the more it shows these moves, the stronger it will become and the more popular it will be among the Lebanese people. Actually, the Lebanese do not want foreigners to dominate their country, decide their fate, and take over the security situation. Therefore, the Lebanese people support Hezbollah's policies," said the political expert.
Asked about impacts of Lebanese government's actions on the relations with Iran, Ghanadbashi said that "it is better for the Lebanese government to have friendly and balanced relationship with Iran and not to be under control of Arab reactionary regime's hand and foot. Iran demands the new government to follow and implement policies of the president and stop in the face of foreign interventions aimed at disrupting relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran wants respect to the demands of the Lebanese people and has never sought intervention in the political structures of this country and tries to keep Lebanon from being a rsmpancy ground for regional dictators and foreign powers and this is a demand of the people of Lebanon, too."
