Hezbollah calls on authorities to 'immediately reverse' Iran ambassador's expulsion

Hezbollah on Tuesday called the decision by Lebanon's foreign ministry to expel the newly appointed Iranian ambassador a "sin", and demanded the authorities "immediately reverse" the move.

In the latest unprecedented step by Lebanese authorities since a new war erupted between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanon's foreign ministry declared the Iranian ambassador persona non grata, giving him until Sunday to leave the country.

"Hezbollah calls on the president of the republic and the prime minister to demand that the foreign minister... immediately reverse this decision because of its dangerous repercussions," the Iran-backed group said in a statement, calling the move a "national and strategic sin".

A source from Hezbollah told AFP that "the foreign minister's decision violates the most basic diplomatic norms and is an insult to the Shiite community in Lebanon."

"The foreign minister must retract it, and we will ask the Iranian ambassador to remain in Beirut and consider the decision null and void," the source added.

The foreign ministry clarified in a separate statement that its decision does not constitute a severing of diplomatic relations with Iran, but rather "a measure against the ambassador for violating diplomatic protocol and his obligations as an appointed ambassador to Lebanon."

The ministry accused him of making statements "interfering in Lebanon's internal politics and evaluating the decisions taken by the government."

Earlier this month, Lebanon summoned the Iranian charge d'affaires for a meeting after the Guards claimed responsibility for a coordinated missile attack with Hezbollah on Israel.

Beirut decided on March 5 to ban any activity by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards in the country.

The government also took the unprecedented step of imposing a ban on Hezbollah's military activities and called on the group to hand over its weapons to the state.