Lebanon blocks Iranian plane from landing at Beirut airport

BEIRUT

Lebanese authorities prevented an Iranian plane on Thursday from landing at Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut.

According to the state news agency, protesters waving Hezbollah flags blocked the main road to the airport to protest refusal to permit the plane to land.

Protesters also set tires ablaze at the entrance to the airport amid chants of support for former Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in September last year.

The Lebanese daily An-Nahar said dozens of Lebanese passengers were left stranded at Tehran airport after an Iranian Airlines flight was unable to take off.

Passengers were informed that they could not return to Lebanon on Thursday due to a lack of permission to land at Beirut airport, the newspaper said.

“There are no landing permissions for Iranian flights at Beirut Airport, and the plane supposed to bring the Lebanese back today has not yet taken off from Tehran Airport,” the newspaper said, citing a Lebanese civil aviation source.

There was no immediate comment from the Lebanese authorities on the report.

On Wednesday, Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee claimed that Hezbollah and Iran's Quds Force use the Beirut airport to smuggle funds intended for arming Hezbollah through civilian flights.

A similar incident took place on Jan. 3, when Lebanese airport authorities subjected an Iranian plane carrying a diplomatic delegation to a detailed search, triggering protests from Hezbollah supporters, who organized a sit-in near the airport.