Lebanese politician claims Iran's Qasem Soleimani is in Beirut
A decision was reportedly made by Iran's Supreme National Security Council to send Soleimani to Beirut with "extraordinary powers to face the scheme."
By TZVI JOFFREIran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah and IRGC Quds Force Commander Qasem Soleimani(photo credit: KHAMENEI.IR)
Lebanese Movement for Democratic Change leader Elie Mahfoud tweeted that Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps' (IRGC) Quds force, has arrived in Beirut as protests sweep the nation. Some of the protesters have spoken out against the Hezbollah terrorist movement which is backed by Iran.Mahfoud questioned whether Soleimani's arrival had anything to do with promises by Hezbollah's Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah to "prevent the fall of the besieged Hezbollah government?" The Lebanese politician also said that it's time to stop Iranian intervention in Lebanon.Soleimani's arrival has not been confirmed by any official source, according to Erem News.Shortly after the protests began in Lebanon, the Iranian Supreme National Security Council held an emergency meeting including representatives of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, the IRGC and Hezbollah, according to a report by Arabic daily Al-Jarida. The representatives agreed that the demonstrations are legitimate and decided to not participate in the demonstrations and instead simply monitor them.A source from the Supreme National Security Council told Al-Jarida that Iran's perception of the protests changed after reports of an international attempt by Iran's enemies to overthrow the Hariri government and keep the country in a constitutional vacuum.According to the report, a second meeting was convened by the council and a decision was made to send Soleimani to Beirut with "extraordinary powers to face the scheme." The report did not clarify what was meant by "extraordinary powers."United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric called on Lebanese authorities to "deal with unauthorized armed groups," adding that the UN recognizes that it is important for Lebanon to "disarm militias and stop violations of state sovereignty," according to news agency Asharq Al-Awsat.
