Nasrallah congratulates Iran’s Pezeshkian on presidential victory
Hezbollah leader praises Tehran’s support for its ‘resistance groups’ in congratulatory letter to reformist who said he wants warm relations with all countries ‘except for Israel’
Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah congratulated Iranian president-elect Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday on his victory, emphasizing Tehran’s role as a “strong” supporter of regional “resistance” groups.
In a letter circulated on the Iran-backed terror group’s social media channels, Nasrallah congratulated Pezeshkian on his “blessed election” by the Iranian people.
“We in Hezbollah and in all the resistance groups in the region… always look to the Islamic Republic of Iran as a strong, stable and permanent support,” the letter read.
Tehran provides financial and military support to the Lebanon-based Hezbollah, which was created at the initiative of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps after Beirut was besieged by Israel in 1982 during Lebanon’s civil war.
The Shiite Muslim movement is a key part of the so-called Axis of Resistance — an alliance of pro-Iran terror groups and militias that oppose the existence of Israel as well as the United States and the West in General.
In addition to Hezbollah, Iran’s proxies include the Palestinian terror group Hamas, which Israel has been battling in Gaza since the October 7 terror onslaught in southern Israel, as well as the Houthi rebels in Yemen and armed militias in Iraq.
Iranian reformist candidate Pezeshkian, who advocates improved ties with the West “except for Israel,” won a runoff presidential election against ultraconservative Saeed Jalili, the Iranian interior ministry said on Saturday.
The election came against a backdrop of heightened regional tensions due to the war in Gaza, a dispute with the West over Iran’s nuclear program, and domestic discontent over the state of Iran’s sanctions-hit economy.
The death of ultraconservative president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash back in May necessitated the election, which had not been due until 2025.
Since October 8, Hezbollah-led forces have attacked Israeli communities and military posts along the border on a near-daily basis, with the group saying it is doing so to support Gaza amid the war there.
So far, the skirmishes on the border have resulted in 10 civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of 16 IDF soldiers and reservists. There have also been several attacks from Syria, without any injuries.
Hezbollah has named 361 members who have been killed by Israel during the ongoing skirmishes, mostly in Lebanon but some also in Syria. In Lebanon, another 65 operatives from other terror groups, a Lebanese soldier, and dozens of civilians have been killed.
Hezbollah is the only Lebanese faction to have retained its weapons after the country’s 1975-1990 civil conflict.
Its members have long fought in Syria’s civil war in support of President Bashar al-Assad, who earlier Saturday also sent his congratulations to Iran’s president-elect.
