Lebanese split over Iran deal
Political views in Lebanon diverge over the Iranian nuclear deal, as some consider it a tool to tighten relations between Tehran and Beirut and others as a way for Iran to further expand its influence in the region.
The deal with Iran has been signed and is now an undeniable reality, yet doubt lingers about its effects and repercussions for the situation in the Middle East. Will its critics be proven correct, and will the situation mutate into one much more dangerous than that prior to July 14, 2015? The crisis is growing deeper, and the fires of war rage stronger in Syria, Iraq and Yemen. The dispute is intensifying between Shiites and Sunnis, as well as supporters and detractors of Iran, from Gaza to Beirut, Aleppo and Fallujah.
Skeptics such as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Saudi Prince Turki al-Faisal fear that Iran’s frozen funds to be released pursuant to the Vienna agreement will be used to bolster the capabilities of the Quds Force, the Shiite Popular Mobilization Units and Hezbollah, dreading that Iran will up the pace of exporting its revolution.
On the other hand, optimists such as US President Barack Obama and his team view the agreement as a harbinger of a new era, wagering that lifting the sanctions will pave the way for Iran to economically merge with the rest of the world, as a prelude to it restoring its political position therein.
Thus, in Lebanon, optimists hope that the agreement will heal the rift between the pro-Iran camp, namely the March 8 coalition, and the anti-Iran March 14 — those members were always accused by their opponents of being strong supporters of former US Ambassador to Lebanon Jeffrey Feltman, at a time when the United States strongly opposed Iran.
