France ready to help keep Iran at bay in Syria, Macron says

The decision follows allegations by Israel's military that Iran’s IRGC Quds Force uses civilian flights to smuggle money to Hezbollah via Beirut airport.

“The Iranian Quds Force and the terrorist group Hezbollah have been exploiting Beirut International Airport international flights over the past few weeks in an attempt to smuggle funds allocated to arm Hezbollah with the aim of carrying out attacks against the State of Israel,” Israel's military spokesman in Arabic, Avichay Adraee, wrote on X.

The cancellation of flights from Iran to Lebanon was on Thursday confirmed by Saeed Chalondari, CEO of Tehran's Imam Khomeini Airport, who said permission had not been granted for Beirut flights.

Shortly after the cancellations, images surfaces on social media purporting to show Hezbollah supporters in Lebanon blocking the road to Beirut Airport in protest against the refusal to allow Mahan Air to land.

On Monday, Lebanese media reported that incoming flights from Iraq to Beirut are being subject to inspection to prevent the transfer of money to Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.

Since the ceasefire began in November, both Israel and Lebanon have accused the other of dozens of breaches. Israel has accused Hezbollah of rearming after weeks of bombardment from Israel, targeting key infrastructure and the group’s top leadership.

Lebanon accuses Israel of territorial breaches and ongoing military action which has seen dozens of Lebanese killed amid the ceasefire.

Two weeks ago, Israel accused Iran of sending tens of millions of dollars to Hezbollah through clandestine cash deliveries, lodging formal complaints with the US-led committee overseeing the ceasefire, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Iranian envoys have been flying into Beirut from Tehran with suitcases stuffed with US dollars to finance Hezbollah’s operations. Additionally, Israel has reported that Turkish nationals have been used as couriers to transport funds from Istanbul to Beirut, the report said.

"They threaten us that they will hit nuclear facilities... If you (the enemy) strike a hundred of those we will build a thousand other ones," Pezeshkian said during a speech in Bushehr, home to one of Iran’s biggest nuclear plants.

"You can hit the buildings and places but you cannot hit those who build it... you cannot erase the minds of our scientists.”

US President Donald Trump raised on Monday the possibility of Israel hitting Iran in an interview with Fox News saying he would prefer to make a deal with Iran to prevent it from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

"Everyone thinks Israel, with our help or our approval, will go in and bomb the hell out of them. I would prefer that not to happen," Trump said.

On Thursday, the commander of Iran's conventional air force Hamid Vahedi said: "We tell all countries, friends and foes alike, that our country's doctrine is defensive, but we will respond with force against any enemy attack."

Tit-for-tat strikes between Iran and Israel punctuated last year's Gaza conflict as the years long shadow war between the two archenemies came out in the open.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that Israel is considering attacks on Iran's nuclear sites and views its Mideast adversary as vulnerable, citing US intelligence agencies’ assessments in the waning days of the Joe Biden administration.

In January, Iran's atomic energy chief said that thousands of workers are currently involved in constructing the second and third units of the Bushehr nuclear power plant.

"Currently, 5,000 people are involved in the construction of the two new units," Mohammad Eslami said during a visit to the site, adding, "Their efforts are ensuring the project progresses with good discipline and speed."

Rubio's itinerary includes stops in Israel, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates from February 15-18, following participation in the Munich Security Conference and G7 Foreign Ministers' Meeting starting February 13.

The State Department emphasized that discussions with senior officials will center on advancing regional cooperation, stability, and peace,with a key component being addressing the threat posed by Iran.

“The trip will center on freeing American and all other hostages from Hamas captivity, advancing to Phase II of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, and countering the destabilizing activities of the Iranian regime and its proxies.”

On February 4, Trump signed a directive reviving his so-called maximum pressure policy on Iran from his first term aimed at driving the Islamic Republic's oil exports to zero. After signing the memorandum, he said he would prefer a deal with Tehran to an Israeli attack on their nuclear sites.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian insisted on Wednesday that the country would not yield to external threats after US President Donald Trump mooted the bombing of its adversary earlier this week.

The Israeli military spokesman in Arabic, Avichay Adraee, wrote on X: “The Iranian Quds Force and the terrorist group Hezbollah have been exploiting Beirut International Airport international flights over the past few weeks in an attempt to smuggle funds allocated to arm Hezbollah with the aim of carrying out attacks against the State of Israel.”

The internationally brokered ceasefire, which began in November, has seen both sides accuse the other of dozens of breaches. Israel has accused Hezbollah of rearming after weeks of bombardment from Israel, targeting key infrastructure and the group’s top leadership.

Lebanon accuses Israel of territorial breaches and ongoing military action which has seen dozens of Lebanese killed amid the ceasefire.

“The IDF remains in contact with the ceasefire monitoring mechanism and continuously transmits specific information to thwart these transfers. Despite the efforts made, we estimate that some of these money smuggling attempts have succeeded,” Andraee added.

The initial six-week ceasefire has been extended to February 18 and the committee includes representatives from Israel, Lebanon, the US, France, and the UN.

On Monday, Lebanese media reported that incoming flights from Iraq to Beirut are being subject to inspection to prevent the transfer of money to Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.

Saudi Arabian outlet Al Hadath quoted Lebanese media as saying that the inspections are underway without saying by who, while the Lebanese army has been taking a greater role in domestic affairs since the ceasefire began.

Lebanese newspaper Lebanon Debate reported on Monday that "similar to what happened previously in the cases of inspection of planes coming from Iran, the same thing happens with flights coming from Iraq, as the flights are subject to a thorough security inspection in order to verify the possibility of them transporting money or assets for the benefit of Hezbollah."

Just two weeks ago, Israel accused Iran of sending tens of millions of dollars to Hezbollah through clandestine cash deliveries, lodging formal complaints with the US-led committee overseeing the ceasefire, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Iranian envoys have been flying into Beirut from Tehran with suitcases stuffed with US dollars to finance Hezbollah’s operations. Additionally, Israel has reported that Turkish nationals have been used as couriers to transport funds from Istanbul to Beirut, the report said.

Last year, The Telegraph reported that Iranian weapons were being stored at Beirut’s main airport, claims which were denied by the Lebanese air transport association.

Whistleblowers at the airport told The Telegraph they were concerned about increasing weapons supplies on direct flights from Iran.

They claimed that they had observed “unusually big boxes” arriving and the increased presence of high level Hezbollah commanders.

Israel was considering significant strikes on Iran in 2025 and viewed President Donald Trump as more amenable to their plans, the paper cited officials familiar with the assessment as saying.

US intelligence cited the risk of further conflict in the Middle East and characterized Iran as weakened following an Oct. 26 Israeli attack on Iran, adding that Israel views the window for denying Iran a nuclear weapons capability as fast closing.

Iran denies seeking a nuclear weapon but Israel says is Mideast nemesis wants an atomic bomb and must be denied the power to destroy the Jewish state.

Trump, long an opponent of foreign wars, reimposed the so-called maximum pressure campaign on Iran of his first term this month but said he much preferred a deal and described any reports of a US-Israeli strike on Iran as "greatly exaggerated".

Diplomatic room for US-Iran talks for a nuclear deal appeared to narrow in the past week as Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei rejected the idea of negotiations and relatively moderate President Masoud Pezeshkian endorsed the stance.

Israel has publicly broached the idea of an attack in the past.

“Iran today is more exposed than ever to damage to its nuclear facilities," Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in November.

Since the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Iran-backed Hamas militants from Gaza, Israel has been locked in a region-wide conflict with Iran and its armed allies.

Escalating a conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon in late September, Israel began to gain the initiative and solidified its advantage with a direct air attack on Iran in retaliation for a missile salvo from the Islamic Republic.

Israel and the United States said those attacks mostly knocked out Iran's anti-aircraft capabilities and left it exposed to any future strikes.

Analysts widely view Iran's fortified and underground nuclear sites as potentially beyond the ability of Israeli bombers to destroy and may require American help or collaboration.