A massive new US embassy complex in a tiny Middle East nation is raising eyebrows

Source: US embassy in Beirut on Twitter

A massive new US embassy complex in a tiny Middle East nation is raising eyebrows

Sprawling over a 43-acre site, the complex in the Beirut suburb of Awkar is almost two-and-a-half times the size of the land the White House sits on and more than 21 soccer fields.

Plans for the embassy complex were announced in 2015 and it is reported to have cost $1 billion.

Lebanon is part of the Belt and Road Initiative.

UN high court finds US seizure of Iranian assets violated treaty + More

In 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court ordered nearly $2 billion in assets of Iran’s state bank, frozen in the U.S., to be paid as compensation to relatives of victims of attacks linked to Iran.

UN high court finds US seizure of Iranian assets violated treaty

Related:

International Court of Justice orders US to compensate Iran for frozen assets

ICJ judgments are legally binding, however, the court has no means of enforcing them. Previously, both the US and Iran have ignored the court’s judgments.

US Hails ICJ Ruling On Iran Assets As ‘Major Victory’

“The court’s decision today rejected the vast majority of Iran’s case, including notably Iran’s claims on behalf of Bank Markazi,” said acting legal adviser Rich Visek of the US State Department.