Reports on the “six-month visa extension” of Iran’s former ambassador in Beirut

🔸Lebanese media reported that the General Security Directorate, with the “approval” of Joseph Aoun, the president of the country, extended for six months the residence visa of Mohammadreza Rezaof Shibani, the ambassador of the Islamic Republic, as an ordinary citizen present in Lebanon.

🔸The Lebanese government, on Farvardin 4 of this year, rejected the credentials of Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, calling Shibani an “undesirable element,” and gave him a few days to leave the territory of the country.

🔸Mr. Shibani had been accused of “interfering in Lebanon’s affairs” and “violating the norms and rules established governing the relations between diplomatic missions.”

🔸However, the Iranian Foreign Ministry did not accept this decision, and the ministry’s spokesperson stated that the ambassador continues to carry out his activities in Beirut.

🔸Mohammadreza Rezaof Shibani’s visa was set to expire on August 24, 2026 (Second Shahrivar).

🔸Based on reports from Lebanese media, Shibani had requested the extension of his stay “on his own as an ordinary citizen and with a non-diplomatic position.”

🔸The Lebanese foreign minister had said last week that normal relations with Iran’s representation in Lebanon could resume only if Tehran, in accordance with the established diplomatic procedures, follows the decision of that country’s government to remove the ambassador.

🔸The Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not yet responded to the visa extension for the Iranian ambassador.