US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has ordered Ibrahim Charara, the Lebanese consul general in Detroit, to leave the United States. The directive was issued in response to Charara’s public praise for the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.
The decision marks a significant escalation in diplomatic tensions between Washington and Beirut, targeting a senior consular official rather than a standard diplomatic posting. Charara, who has served as Lebanon’s representative in the Detroit area, is now subject to immediate removal from US territory.
The order follows scrutiny of Charara’s remarks, which were deemed to violate US policy regarding designated terrorist organizations. By lauding Hezbollah, a group designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the United States, the consul general’s actions triggered a formal diplomatic sanction under US law.
Lebanon’s diplomatic corps in the US now faces increased oversight, with Washington signaling that support for Hezbollah will not be tolerated by its consular staff. The move underscores the US administration’s strict enforcement of sanctions and counter-terrorism protocols against Lebanese officials.
As of the announcement, no immediate response from the Lebanese government was detailed in the initial reporting. The deportation order stands as a direct consequence of Charara’s public statements, reinforcing the boundaries of acceptable conduct for foreign diplomats operating within the United States.
<small>Source: Al Jazeera — read the original story there.</small>