Khaberni - Iran announced on Monday that its ambassador to Lebanon will remain in the country despite being declared persona non grata by the Lebanese government and being given a deadline to leave the country by Sunday.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Baqaei said during a weekly press conference, "Our ambassador will continue his duties as the ambassador of Iran in Beirut, and he will remain there," adding that the embassy in Beirut "is still operational."
On Tuesday, March 24, 2026, the Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Iranian chargé d'affaires in Lebanon, Tawfiq Khoshkhoo, and informed him of the Lebanese state's decision to withdraw the approval of the accreditation of the appointed Iranian ambassador Mohammad Reza Sheybani and declaring him persona non grata; demanding his departure from Lebanon by no later than Sunday, March 29.
The Lebanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a press statement on Tuesday that it had summoned Lebanon's ambassador to Tehran, Ahmad Sweidan, for consultations, following what it described as Iran's violation of diplomatic norms and established practices in relations between the two countries.
