Marco Rubio ordered Lebanon’s Detroit consul general Ibrahim Charara to leave after posts allegedly praising a deadly 1983 bombing resurfaced. Charara left on 8 November, and Lebanon’s foreign minister has announced a temporary replacement.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered Ibrahim Charara, Lebanon’s consul general in Detroit, to leave the United States after social media posts allegedly praising the 1983 Beirut Marine barracks bombing resurfaced, Al Jazeera said. The bombing, which the report attributes to Hezbollah, killed 241 American soldiers.
L’Orient-Le Jour said Charara left the United States on 8 November, citing airport farewell videos including footage from al-Jadeed. The US State Department had declared him persona non grata on 6 November.
The posts attributed to Charara were dated 21 October and 23, 2021 and praised the attack, L’Orient-Le Jour said. A source close to Charara said the posts appeared after his account was hacked.
A persona non grata declaration means a host country considers a foreign representative unwelcome. Under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, the host can require the sending country to recall a consular staff member within a reasonable time; the person may lose consular immunity if not recalled.
Lebanese Foreign Minister Joe Raggi said on 8 November that a diplomat on a special mission would arrive in Michigan within the next two days to run the consulate and handle Lebanese citizens’ requests. The arrangement is intended to prevent an interruption in services until a new consul general is appointed.
UN News reported that 18 people survived the incident in which 14 bodies were recovered, while 28 Sudanese migrants were rescued from another boat where 8 bodies were recovered. Several people remain missing.
2 min
The certificates cover about 25,000 displaced people who have acquired property in Armenia or have construction underway. A new employment program is scheduled to begin on 1 January 2027.
3 min
Anti-Corruption Committee chairman Arthur Nahapetyan says the proceedings concern 10 people, while the preliminary investigation continues for another 11 defendants.
2 min
