Israel nearly bombed Beirut Airport to stop Iranian money transfers

An Iranian diplomat aboard the plane refused to allow a search of his bag, which was later confiscated by Lebanese security.

By World Israel News Staff

The Israeli military was prepared to bomb Beirut Airport but held off on the attack after a transfer of millions of dollars in funding from Iran to Hezbollah did not occur.

According to a report from Saudi outlet Al Arabiya, a recent flight from Iran to Lebanon raised suspicions among Israel’s intelligence agencies.

Israeli officials believed that Iran was planning to use the flight to smuggle millions of dollars to the Hezbollah terror organization.

That suspicion was supported by a separate report from Al-Hadith, which said that Western officials also speculated that the flight was be leveraged to support Hezbollah.

Upon landing, Iranian officials attempted to prevent airport officials from searching the plane, sparking further concerns about what was carried onboard.

An Iranian diplomat aboard the plane refused to allow a search of his bag, which was later confiscated by Lebanese security.

A search of the plane and the bags of the passengers did not turn up the funds, so Israel did not attack the airport.

According to an October 2024 report from JBN, Hezbollah’s main sources of funding have been seriously impacted by the fighting with Israel.

Many of Lebanon’s biggest commercial banks are wary that providing funds to Hezbollah could place them in Israel’s crosshairs.

“I’m hearing from Lebanese bankers, including Hezbollah financiers, that Lebanon’s wealthiest bankers who can afford to fly have fled to Europe and the Gulf, fearing they could be targeted next by Israel for helping Hezbollah,” former State Department official David Asher told JBN.

“These Lebanese bankers, most of them billionaires, see the wind is blowing against Hezbollah, so they are not going to let it take millions of dollars out of their banks, which still have cash despite being bankrupt on paper,” he added. “They know that if they do, Israel probably will eliminate them too.”