The key facts

  • The US declared Lebanon's consul general in Detroit, Ibrahim Sharaa, persona non grata, Lebanese media reported
  • The Lebanese Embassy in Washington confirmed to the newspaper Annahar that it had received an official notification
  • The decision followed a Washington Free Beacon report about 2021 posts attributed to the diplomat

Diplomat declared persona non grata

The United States has declared Lebanon's Consul General in Detroit, Michigan, Ibrahim Sharaa, persona non grata — Lebanese media reported on Saturday. The Lebanese Embassy in Washington confirmed to the newspaper Annahar that the State Department had officially notified it of the decision to expel the diplomat.

What preceded the decision

The decision followed reports in American media about old social media posts attributed to the consul. On November 2, Washington Free Beacon quoted a 2021 post in which the diplomat, according to the outlet, «praised Hezbollah's 1983 suicide bombing against the US Marine Corps barracks, which killed 241 American service members». Neither the State Department nor Lebanon's Foreign Ministry had issued an official statement on the matter at the time of publication, so the motives behind the decision have not been officially confirmed.