Lebanon joined several Arab nations in releasing a joint statement condemning remarks by US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, who asserted that Israel holds a biblical right to lands belonging to multiple countries across southwest Asia.
The statement represents the latest flashpoint in deteriorating US-Arab relations, a trajectory accelerated by Washington's unwavering support for Israel during the Gaza conflict. For Arab governments that spent decades carefully balancing strategic partnerships with the United States against domestic public opinion, Huckabee's invocation of religious scripture to justify territorial expansion delivers precisely the ammunition Tehran needs to portray American diplomacy as inherently hostile to Arab sovereignty.
In this region, today's headline is yesterday's history repeating. The biblical claim to land stretching from the Nile to the Euphrates - an interpretation of Genesis 15:18 embraced by some Christian Zionist and right-wing Israeli factions - has long simmered beneath the surface of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. Huckabee's decision to articulate this position as a sitting ambassador marks an unprecedented formalization of what Arab states view as an existential threat.
Lebanon, whose southern territories have historically been referenced in expansionist interpretations, joined the condemnation alongside other affected nations. The timing proves particularly sensitive for Beirut, which continues navigating reconstruction following recent conflict with Hezbollah and managing the permanent presence of IRGC advisers on its soil.
For Gulf states that normalized relations with Israel through the Abraham Accords, Huckabee's statement creates domestic political complications. These governments justified normalization by arguing it would moderate Israeli policy and strengthen Arab influence in Washington. Instead, they now confront an American envoy who appears to validate the most extreme territorial claims against Arab nations.
Iran's response, while measured in official channels, will likely prove more consequential in practice. Tehran has spent years arguing that American security guarantees to Arab states are worthless, that normalization with Israel represents civilizational betrayal, and that only resistance - meaning Iranian proxies - can defend Arab sovereignty. Huckabee has effectively written their talking points for them.
The erosion of American credibility in the region did not begin with this statement, but it accelerates a process already underway. When Arab publics see a US ambassador invoke religious text to justify claims on their territory, it reinforces a narrative that Washington views the Middle East through a biblical, rather than diplomatic, lens. For governments trying to maintain strategic partnerships with the United States while managing increasingly skeptical populations, that makes an already difficult balance nearly impossible.
