After Mr. Nasrallah’s announcement, Ms. Shea, the United States ambassador, said she was working to put in place another arrangement to help solve Lebanon’s energy crisis. It calls for natural gas from Egypt to be sent to Jordan and transferred to Lebanon via a pipeline through Syria.
A high-level delegation from Lebanon visited Damascus, Syria, this month to discuss the plan, but its details remain unclear, including how long it will take to repair the pipeline, who will pay for it and what fees Syria will charge for letting the gas pass through its territory.
“I’m not sure how willing the U.S. is to risk placing sanctions on a needy population,” Mr. Hage Ali said. “That would paint the U.S. as being harsh and heavy-handed, and that is a win for Hezbollah.”
That could pose yet another challenge to the United States, which has sanctions against anyone who does business with the Syrian government.
The deep suffering of the Lebanese made it unlikely that the United States would punish anyone for accepting the sanctioned Iranian fuel.
“I’m not sure how willing the U.S. is to risk placing sanctions on a needy population,” Mr. Hage Ali said. “That would paint the U.S. as being harsh and heavy-handed, and that is a win for Hezbollah.”
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