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Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Beirut - Khalil Fleihan

US-Iranian Escalation Worries Lebanese Army Commander

A general view shows Beirut's Corniche, a seaside promenade (R) at sunset in Beirut, Lebanon May 3, 2016. REUTERS/Alia Haju

Sit-ins that paralyze Beirut from time to time and the disruption of production and services sectors have not prevented the Lebanese government from making contacts with major countries, especially US and Russia, to spare Lebanon the consequences of any confrontation between US and Iran, amid fears that Tehran would ask Hezbollah to open a front with Israel.

A Lebanese government source told Asharq Al-Awsat that Army Commander General Joseph Aoun will discuss with US military officials he will meet in Washington the possibility of an American-Iranian clash, the involvement of Israel and Hezbollah and the targeting of the Lebanese army.

The source said that the “verbal escalation cannot be underestimated because it coincides with military reinforcements from both sides in the waters of the Gulf and beyond.”

He described the situation so far as “just a display of military and media muscle, but the terrorist act at the port of Fujairah in the UAE on Sunday morning led to the emergence of a new situation,” adding that any hasty moves “could trigger a war, which extent could not be predicted and consequences could be destructive.”

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