Observers have also noted that the incident occurred in the context of a series of unfolding events, starting with the assassination of Elias Al-Hassrouny, a member of the Lebanese Forces party in Ain Ebel, and including the targeting of the Forces center in Zahle on Wednesday night, and then the embassy incident.
All of these incidents seemed like episodes in a fluid security situation. Even the temporary closure of the Khaldeh road Friday afternoon in both directions raised concerns about its security implications.
So, are there any clues to unravel this series of events?
There is no definitive answer to the question. Still, according to the information gathered during the investigation into the embassy incident, it has been revealed that an unidentified armed individual exploited an "ambiguity" to fire 15 shots from his military machine gun toward the embassy building. This "ambiguity" was in an area for which Lebanese security is responsible.
According to sources, "everything that happens on Lebanese territory is the responsibility of Lebanese security."
They said, "Tolerance allows the perpetrator to act with impunity, and what happened at the embassy level is serious. If the perpetrator is not identified, this case will be added to the file of political assassinations, as whoever assassinated has enough organization to carry out their work."
The same sources added, "The area around the US embassy in Awkar is a highly secure zone, and no individual can breach it, which means that this message, on the anniversary of the embassy bombing in 1984, is a security message. A party observed, monitored, and identified a gap for entry and acted on it."
In parallel, Western diplomatic sources stated, "Hezbollah's role on the internal level is political, but everything related to the Syrian, Israeli, or American affairs is Iranian."
"Therefore, this is an Iranian message to the US from Lebanon, multifaceted, starting with America's role in controlling the Syrian-Iraqi border and not ending with the statement that the US is keen on stability in Lebanon because if the US supports the Lebanese army, this party wants to show that security in Lebanon is in its hands, not in the hands of the army or any other party," the sources said.
The US Ambassador visited the caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Friday and confirmed that her country's diplomatic mission "cannot be intimidated" and that "our security measures are very robust, and our relationship is strong, and we continue our work at the embassy as usual."
However, observers told Nidaa Al-Watan, "The gunfire at the embassy is a warning that the appearances of reassurance that accompanied the behavior of US diplomats in Lebanon in the previous period were seen by Tehran and its group in Lebanon as a provocation. Thus, the incident serves as an invitation for them to review these appearances of reassurance."
Moving from security to politics, after the confirmation by the Speaker of Parliament, Nabih Berri, on Friday to Nidaa Al-Watan about the Qatari initiative towards Lebanon, Berri received the Qatari envoy.
As for the caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abdallah Bou Habib, he stated in New York, "The French initiative is moving but on its own."
He said, "There is no disagreement among the members of the Quintet Committee during their meeting in New York, but there was no agreement reached that would lead to the issuance of a statement."
He also mentioned, "We understood that the Qataris asked France about the duration of the mission of the French envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian, but there was no French response."
Bou Habib said regarding the Syrian refugee crisis, "I am in contact with my Syrian counterpart, and after my return to Lebanon, we will schedule a meeting in Syria to discuss the refugee crisis." He expressed Lebanon's concern about "being exposed to a new wave of displacement due to events in Syria."
Bou Habib then mentioned that he met with the Iranian Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, and they discussed the Lebanese presidential file.