Iran’s president-elect Pezeshkian with former foreign minister Javad Zarif in Tehran
Iran’s president-elect Massoud Pezeshkian has responded to a congratulatory message from Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, pledging continued support to “resistance force” aligned with Tehran in the region.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has always supported the resistance of the people in the region against the illegitimate Zionist regime. Supporting the resistance is rooted in the fundamental policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the ideals of the late Imam Khomeini, and the guidance of the Supreme Leader, and will continue with strength,” Pezeshkian wrote.
Pezeshkian won the election last Friday, campaigning as a “reformist,” despite previously characterizing himself as a “principlist,” a term in the Islamic Republic jargon meaning someone dedicated to the principles of the Islamic revolution.
From its inception in 1979, the Islamic government in Iran has been a staunch enemy of Israel and the United States. It established the Lebanese Hezbollah in the early 1980s as a proxy force to confront Israel. In the past two decades it has created other proxy forces in Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Palestinian territories. It also has networks in other Middle Eastern, African and Western countries.
Iranian have protested against the government’s financial and military assistance to these groups as a waste of national resources. The slogan, “Neither Gaza nor Lebanon, my life for Iran” has been a familiar chant during anti-government protests in recent years. As Tehran has committed more resources, its own economic situation has worsened, driving million of people into poverty.
Pezeshkian went on to tell Nasrallah, “I am confident that the resistance movements in the region will not allow this regime [Israel] to continue its warmongering and criminal policies against the oppressed people of Palestine and other nations in the region.”