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.
Araqchi on Thursday said he would visit Lebanon after Raggi issued a formal invitation.
Raggi was not the only senior Lebanese official to take issue with Iran. Earlier this year, President Joseph Aoun refused to meet with Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani while he was visiting Beirut.
The source said the refusal was a “direct message that the Lebanese state no longer tolerates parallel channels or relations that go beyond formal and constitutional levels.”
“This is the Lebanese state’s official position,” it stressed. “Iran will be welcomed if its changes the way it approaches Lebanon, whereby relations should be between official and constitutional institutions. Both countries should be equals, not with one being subordinate to the other.”
Earlier in 2025, Aoun received Iranian Speaker of the Shura Council Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, informing him that Lebanon has “grown weary” of other countries “waging their wars on its territory.”
“It is about time that the Lebanese people are relieved of wars and tragedies,” he said, referring to the “support war” Hezbollah had launched in 2023 in solidarity with Hamas in Gaza with Iran’s backing.
On Sunday, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei renewed Tehran’s call on Beirut to hold dialogue.
“Iran would rather avoid making statements that would distract Lebanon from focusing on its sovereignty and territorial integrity. The real danger against Lebanon’s sovereignty and dignity are Israel’s ambitions and hegemony,” he remarked.
Meanwhile, a senior adviser to Iran's supreme leader, Ali Akbar Velayati, declared that Tehran will continue to support Hezbollah.
Meeting with Hezbollah representative in Tehran, Abdullah Safieddine, he described the party as one of “the most important pillars of the Resistance Axis.”
Hezbollah is playing a “fundamental role in confronting Zionism,” he added.
Such statements demonstrate how Iran views Hezbollah’s arsenal as part of Tehran's regional security system, not as an issue related to Lebanon’s sovereignty.
The Lebanese government earlier this year took a landmark decision to impose state monopoly over arms, which effectively calls on Hezbollah to lay down its weapons.
Another adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Shamkhani, had previously openly declared that efforts to disarm Hezbollah “will fail.”
“These arms are those of the Lebanese people to defend their territory against Israel,” he added, rejecting any discussions about handing them over to the Lebanese state.
The official Lebanese source stressed that “there can be no going back” from the decision to impose state monopoly over arms.
“The internal and external objections will not change the state’s policy that has taken the decision to impose its authority throughout Lebanon,” it continued.
