US Ambassador to Beirut: Iran Sees Lebanon as a ‘Satellite State’ to Implement its Agenda

US Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea speaks after meeting with Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon March 25, 2021. (Dalati & Nohra)
US Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea speaks after meeting with Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon March 25, 2021. (Dalati & Nohra)
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US Ambassador to Beirut: Iran Sees Lebanon as a ‘Satellite State’ to Implement its Agenda

US Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea speaks after meeting with Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon March 25, 2021. (Dalati & Nohra)
US Ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea speaks after meeting with Lebanon’s President Michel Aoun at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon March 25, 2021. (Dalati & Nohra)

US Ambassador to Beirut Dorothy Shea said that the United States “has been and will continue to be on the side of the Lebanese people” as politicians continue to squabble over the formation of a new government.

In remarks to the local Al-Jadeed channel, Shea noted that the mission government, which was proposed in the initiative of French President Emmanuel Macron, focuses on addressing the repercussions of the Aug. 4 port explosion, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the implementation of some of the major reforms necessary to achieve economic stability and to resume negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The ambassador emphasized that a capable government “should start preparing for the elections scheduled to take place in less than a year.”

The United States views any attempt to disrupt the government as opposing the kind of government Lebanon needs during this crisis, according to Shea.

Speaking about the United States’ dealings with the Lebanese Army and its commander, General Joseph Aoun, the US ambassador said she regarded “Army Commander Joseph Aoun in his current position, and I do not have any opinion on whether he could be a suitable candidate for the presidency.”

She continued: “He is a good partner for us in his current position as commander… We have invested USD 2.2 billion in the Lebanese army over the past ten years, and I think the investment we have made is important and we are proud of.”

Touching on the crippling economic crisis, Shea emphasized her country’s commitment to help the Lebanese Army overcome the situation.

She stressed that Washington “will double the aid provided to the Lebanese army this year by USD 15 million through the Foreign Military Funding Program… Therefore, we will invest USD 120 million with our partners in equipment and training.”

Asked about the Iranian delivery of fuel shipments to Beirut amid a severe shortage in the country, Shea told Al Jadeed that that was not a viable solution to the problem.

“If you get rid of the rampant corruption in the energy and electricity sectors, half of the problem will be solved immediately,” she noted, adding: “What Iran is looking for is some kind of satellite state that they can exploit to pursue their agenda.”



Israeli Forces Have Completed Encirclement of Gaza’s Rafah, Military Says

 Displaced Palestinians flee from east to west of Gaza City after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders in the area, Friday April 11, 2025. (AP)
Displaced Palestinians flee from east to west of Gaza City after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders in the area, Friday April 11, 2025. (AP)
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Israeli Forces Have Completed Encirclement of Gaza’s Rafah, Military Says

 Displaced Palestinians flee from east to west of Gaza City after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders in the area, Friday April 11, 2025. (AP)
Displaced Palestinians flee from east to west of Gaza City after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders in the area, Friday April 11, 2025. (AP)

Israeli forces have completed the encirclement of Gaza's Rafah, the military said on Saturday, part of an announced plan to seize more areas of the enclave, accompanied by large-scale evacuations of the population.

The military has issued repeated evacuation warnings to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians across Rafah since it resumed operations in Gaza on March 18, forcing them into a diminishing space limited by the sea.

Israel said on April 2 that troops had begun seizing an area it called the Morag Axis, a reference to a former Israeli settlement once located between the cities of Rafah and Khan Younis, in southern Gaza.

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have since fled Rafah, a 60 square km area that borders Egypt to the south.

"Over the past 24 hours, the 36th Division's troops completed the establishment of the Morag route, separating Rafah and Khan Younis," the military said on Saturday.

The Israeli offensive in Gaza was launched after Palestinian group Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage, according to Israeli tallies.

More than 50,000 Palestinians have since been killed in the offensive, according to health authorities in the Hamas-run enclave. Most of the population has been displaced and much of Gaza is in ruins.

Israel restarted the offensive in March after effectively abandoning a ceasefire in place since January. The campaign will continue, it says, until the remaining 59 hostages are freed and Hamas is stamped out of Gaza.

Hamas says it will free hostages only as part of a deal that will end the war and has rejected demands to lay down its arms. A Hamas delegation was expected in Cairo over the weekend to discuss new truce proposals, according to a source in the group.