Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Condemns Iranian Interference, Rejects Criticism of Hezbollah Disarmament Policy
BEIRUT — In a marked diplomatic escalation, the Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants on Saturday issued a firm denunciation of recent remarks by Ali Akbar Velayati, senior advisor to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, characterizing them as “a flagrant and wholly unacceptable intrusion” into Lebanon’s internal affairs. In the statement, Lebanese Forces Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi, via the X platform, underscored that this is not the first occasion on which senior Iranian officials have articulated “objectionable positions” regarding matters that fall exclusively within Lebanon’s sovereign decision-making and bear no relation to the Islamic Republic.
The minister reiterated that the Lebanese state “will not permit any external party—whether ally or adversary—to speak on behalf of its people or to assert guardianship over its sovereign decisions.” The statement further urged Iran’s leadership to devote its efforts to meeting the needs and aspirations of its own citizens, rather than involving itself in matters that fall entirely outside its jurisdiction. Raggi emphasized that Lebanon’s future, policies, and political system are determined solely by the Lebanese people through their constitutional institutions, free from any form of external interference or dictate.
The Lebanese statement came in response to an interview Velayati granted to Iran’s Tasnim news agency, during which he voiced opposition to the Lebanese government’s decision to disarm Hezbollah, asserting that Iran “has consistently supported the Lebanese people and the resistance, and continues to do so.”
These Iranian statements, widely perceived in Beirut as direct interference in Lebanon’s sovereign affairs, emerge amid intense domestic debates over the future of Hezbollah’s arsenal and its role within the country’s political and security framework. This occurs against the backdrop of mounting international pressure advocating the exclusive control of arms by the state. The verbal confrontation highlights the deepening rift between Beirut and Tehran concerning Hezbollah, signaling that the issue of the group’s armament will continue to be a central and contentious matter in both regional and domestic arenas in the foreseeable future.
Read more: Dr Samir Geagea: I will meet with Hezbollah “two minutes after it hands over its weapons”