Lebanon: Iranian Embassy Explains Two Diplomatic Suitcases on Mahan Airplane

The Lebanese Foreign Ministry announced that the Iranian Embassy in Beirut explained the contents of two "diplomatic suitcases" on a Mahan Air airplane, after which permission was granted for the small suitcases to leave Beirut Airport. According to the Lebanese Foreign Ministry, the Iranian Embassy sent a written note to this ministry stating that the two suitcases contained "documents and cash for operational expenses solely for the use of the embassy." The Lebanese Foreign Ministry reported that after receiving this note, permission was granted for the two suitcases to exit the airport "in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations." Earlier, Iranian media reported on the tense inspection of the Mahan Air airplane at Rafic Hariri Airport in Beirut. The airplane landed in Beirut on Thursday evening, January 3, and Lebanese security agents entered the aircraft to inspect passengers and crew. However, the objection of an Iranian diplomat to a body search and the opening of the two suitcases he referred to as diplomatic led to tensions with security forces. Some Arab media, including Al-Hadath and Al-Arabiya, reported from Western sources that a plane was expected to arrive in Beirut that day, likely carrying new financial aid from Iran for Hezbollah. According to Lebanese media, security officials in the country emphasized to Iranian parties regarding the alleged shipment for Hezbollah that "any suspicious shipment" would be immediately seized. Meanwhile, Mojtaba Amani, the Iranian ambassador in Beirut, described the cause of the tension at Rafic Hariri Airport as the "ignorance of airport officials regarding the issue of political courier." He also stated that it is "unacceptable" for such actions to be taken only against Iranian airlines and that "we protest this; if such a thing exists, it should be applied to others as well." Concurrently with the inspection of the Mahan Air flight, a number of Hezbollah supporters, some of whom were on motorcycles, gathered near the airport. Since October of last year, the direct oversight of inspections and the takeoff and landing procedures of civilian aircraft at Beirut Airport has been entrusted to the Lebanese Army.