The ink is barely dry on the US-Iran nuclear accord, and Donald Trump is already calling it a historic triumph. Sources close to the White House confirm the president is elated, but behind closed doors, a far more troubling picture emerges. The deal, which exchanges sanctions relief for curbs on Iran's nuclear programme, has left Lebanon hanging in the balance.
Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militia that effectively runs Beirut, is watching its patron emerge from economic isolation. Western intelligence warns of a cash pipeline reopening, fuelling instability in a nation already in freefall. Leaked diplomatic cables I've obtained reveal the State Department's quiet panic: how do you seal a deal with Tehran without arming its proxies?
The unanswered questions are mounting, and the body count in the Levant may rise as a consequence.
