President-elect Masoud Pezeshkian reiterated Iran's opposition to Israel on Monday, stating that regional resistance movements will not permit Israel's "criminal policies" towards Palestinians to persist.
"The Islamic Republic has consistently supported the resistance of the people of the region against the illegitimate Zionist regime," Pezeshkian stated in a message to Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group. These remarks indicate no shift in the regional policies of the incoming government under the relatively moderate Pezeshkian, who triumphed over his hardline opponent in last week's runoff election.
"I am confident that the resistance movements in the region will not allow this regime to continue its warmongering and criminal policies against the oppressed people of Palestine and other nations of the region," Iranian media quoted Pezeshkian as saying. Hezbollah and Hamas are part of a group of Iranian-backed factions in the region known as the Axis of Resistance. Israel did not immediately respond to Pezeshkian's comments.
Israel's conflict with Hamas in Gaza commenced after the militant group, which governs the Palestinian enclave, initiated an attack on southern Israel on October 7, resulting in the deaths of 1,200 people and the capture of approximately 250 hostages, according to Israeli reports. Over 38,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military offensive, and nearly 88,000 have been injured, according to the Gaza health ministry.
