Sources: Iranian Fuel to be Transported by Trucks to Lebanon via Syria

Two informed sources said on Thursday that the first shipment of Iranian fuel brought by the Lebanese Hezbollah group will arrive in Lebanon by trucks via Syria to avoid complications related to sanctions. The armed group, established by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in 1982, announced last month that a shipment of Iranian oil was on its way to Lebanon to help alleviate the severe supply shortage. Hezbollah's opponents in Lebanon have warned of dire consequences from this step, stating that it risks imposing sanctions on a country whose economy has been in collapse for nearly two years. One of the sources told Reuters, "The choice to receive the shipment via Syria is not related to concerns about it being targeted by Israel or the United States, but rather for internal considerations related to not wanting to involve any allies." The caretaker energy minister of Lebanon stated on Wednesday that he had not received a request to import Iranian fuel. The sources said the shipment would arrive at a Syrian port and then be transported by trucks to Lebanon, prioritizing the transfer of diesel to hospitals for generator operation. A report in a local newspaper on Thursday stated that the ship had entered Syrian territorial waters; however, Tanker Trackers, which monitors oil shipments and tankers, denied the report.