Iran's ambassador to Lebanon granted six-month visa despite being declared persona non grata
Iran's ambassador-designate to Lebanon has been granted a six-month residency permit by Lebanese authorities, on the day his original visa was set to expire, despite being declared persona non grata by the Lebanese Foreign Minister earlier this year. A Lebanese security source told The National that the permit, given by the country's General Security, was granted to Mohammad Reza Sheibani on a…
Lebanon's ambassador-designate to Iran, Mohammad Reza Sheibani, has been granted a six-month visa by Lebanese authorities despite being labeled persona non grata by the Lebanese Foreign Minister. This move came on the day his original visa was set to expire. The General Security of Lebanon granted the permit to Sheibani "normally," not for diplomatic status.
The decision implies treating him as an Iranian resident in Lebanon rather than a diplomat. Lebanon's Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi, a critic of Iran's Lebanese proxy Hezbollah, originally declared Sheibani persona non grata in March and withdrew his accreditation. Sheibani had continued to perform ambassadorial functions despite his status.
Recently, he hosted an event at the Iranian embassy to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei's burial, attended by a High Council member. Lebanon entered the Middle East conflict on March 2 when Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel in retaliation for Israeli strikes that killed Khamenei. Lebanon condemned the move, stating that Hezbollah had dragged Lebanon into a conflict not of its own choosing.
In February 2025, Lebanon halted an Iranian flight to Beirut after Israel accused Iran of using civilian aircraft to smuggle money to Hezbollah. Iran blocked Iranian flights until its planes were granted landing rights in Beirut, following a US warning of an Israeli attack on the airport. Lebanese officials, including President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, have consistently rebuked Tehran for interfering in Lebanon's affairs.
Raggi insisted that Sheibani's continued presence in Lebanon violates a final, binding sovereign decision by the Lebanese state. Normal relations with the Iranian mission can only resume if Tehran complies with the Lebanese decision, according to Raggi. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf suggested that peace in Lebanon would not be possible without Iran's stabilizing role, a statement Raggi condemned as interfering in Lebanese affairs.
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