Iran barred Lebanese planes from repatriating dozens of Lebanese nationals stranded in Iran on Friday, in a standoff after Lebanon blocked an Iranian civilian flight following what Tehran described as an Israeli threat to attack it.
Lebanon halted an Iranian flight to Beirut this week after the Israeli military accused Tehran of using civilian aircraft to smuggle cash to Beirut to arm Hezbollah.
Iran said it would not allow Lebanese flights to land until its own flights were cleared to land in Beirut.
The standoff has left dozens of Lebanese citizens stranded in Iran for three days after attending a religious pilgrimage. They had been due to return to Beirut on Iran’s Mahan Air before Lebanon barred the plane from landing.
Dozens of Hezbollah supporters cut off roads around Beirut’s airport late on Thursday and Friday in protest.
The outgoing deputy force commander of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) was injured on Friday after a convoy taking peacekeepers to the airport was “violently attacked,” the mission said.
UNIFIL demanded a full and immediate investigation by Lebanese authorities and for all perpetrators to be brought to justice, it said in a statement.
Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and army both condemned the attack in separate statements and said urgent measures would be taken to identify and arrest the attackers and prevent any violation of civil peace.
Shi’ite Amal movement, a Hezbollah ally, also said “the attack on UNIFIL is an attack on southern Lebanon,” describing blocking of the roads as “a stab at civil peace.”
