Lebanon's Aoun accuses Iran of using country as bargaining chip

Investing.com -- Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Friday that Iran is using Lebanon as a bargaining chip in its negotiations with the United States, marking his strongest criticism yet of Tehran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah during the ongoing conflict with Israel.

In a CNN interview, Aoun said the people of Lebanon are paying the price for Iran's interests and are fed up with the war between Israel and Hezbollah.

"They are using Lebanon as a bargaining chip in their negotiation with the United States," Aoun said of Iran. "It's unacceptable."

Hezbollah, founded by Iran's Revolutionary Guards in 1982, started the latest hostilities more than three months ago when it opened fire in solidarity with Tehran as Iran came under U.S.-Israeli attack.

Aoun, a Maronite Christian who led the Lebanese military before becoming head of state, has pushed for the peaceful disarmament of Hezbollah since parliament elected him last year. Early in the war, he called for face-to-face talks with Israel, putting him at odds with the group.

Iran has made a Lebanon ceasefire a condition for any peace deal with Washington in the wider regional conflict that began with the U.S.-Israeli attack on Tehran on February 28.

On Thursday, Hezbollah rejected a ceasefire plan agreed by Lebanese and Israeli government officials in U.S.-mediated talks in Washington. The deal would require Hezbollah to cease fire and its fighters to withdraw from southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said Thursday in a written statement that the Washington agreement was rejected by broad segments of the Lebanese people.

Addressing Qassem, Aoun said: "The Lebanese people are not your people."

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