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Ghaleb Abu Zeinab, an official member of Hezbollah Politburo, made the statement in an interview with al-Manar\u2019s TV channel, following violent protests that broke out across roads leading to Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport in response to a decision by the Arab country\u2019s government to \u201ctemporarily\u201d ban Iranian planes from touching down.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Lebanese government\u2019s stance on what happened at the airport in Beirut following the refusal of an Iranian plane carrying Lebanese passengers to land was not correct and promising,\u201d Abu Zeinab said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is in Lebanon\u2019s interest that its relations with Iran are at their best,\u201d he said, adding, \u201cWe call on Prime Minister Nawaf Salam to act on the path of balanced relations with Iran and the United States, and the Lebanese government should not be submissive to the dictates of the US government.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lebanon\u2019s Directorate General of Civil Aviation said on Thursday it had \u201ctemporarily rescheduled\u201d some flights including from Iran until February 18 as it was implementing \u201cadditional security measures.\u201d<\/p>\n
Later in the day, a crowd of Lebanese people blocked roads to the Beirut airport and burned tires to protest Lebanon\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n
After the airport protests, authorities said they were working to bring back Lebanese passengers abandoned in Iran with planes belonging to the Beirut-based Middle East Airlines.<\/p>\n
After blocking the Iranian flight, Lebanon dispatched two planes on Friday from its national airliner Middle East Airlines to bring the stranded Lebanese home from Iran, but Iran refused to allow the Lebanese aircraft to land on its territory.<\/p>\n
Lebanon\u2019s Foreign Minister Joe Raggi told Lebanese broadcaster al-Jadeed that his ministry was working to resolve the issue with its Iranian counterpart.<\/p>\n
Iran\u2019s Ambassador to Lebanon Mojtaba Amani, in a televised interview on Friday, said that Tehran is trying to restore flights between the two countries, adding that the Lebanese government had requested that another plane replace the Iranian plane to evacuate the Lebanese stranded in Iran.<\/p>\n
Amani said that Tehran could agree to the Middle East Airlines evacuation flights \u201con the condition that they (Lebanese authorities) don\u2019t block Iranian flights.\u201d<\/p>\n
The developments coincided with Israel\u2019s threats against Iranian planes landing in Lebanon.<\/p>\n
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said that \u201cThe threat by the Zionist regime to a passenger plane carrying Lebanese citizens has disrupted normal flights to Beirut airport.\u201d<\/p>\n
Baghaei condemned Israel\u2019s \u201cgross and continuous violations of the principles and rules of international law and violations of Lebanon\u2019s national sovereignty.\u201d<\/p>\n
In September, Lebanon\u2019s Transport Ministry ordered an Iranian aircraft not to enter its airspace after Israel warned air traffic control at Beirut airport that it would use \u201cforce\u201d if the plane landed.<\/p>\n
SD\/Press TV<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n