Iran has never sought war in the region, the country's foreign minister said during a visit to Lebanon to discuss Israel's war against Gaza and its impact on regional security.
“Iran and Lebanon confirm that war is not the solution and that we never seek to expand it,” Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said at a news conference alongside Abdallah Bou Habib, Lebanon's foreign minister. in Beirut on Saturday.
However, he threatened that any widespread Israeli attack on Lebanon would be the “last day” of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
His visit to Beirut came as the United States and Israel continue to blame Iran and its aligned armed groups in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen for escalating tensions in the region through attacks on American and Israeli targets.
“After months of aggression and genocide by the Zionist regime [Israel] In Gaza and the West Bank, Tel Aviv has not achieved any of its stated objectives,” Amir-Abdollahian told reporters.
“Continued US support for the Zionist regime and Netanyahu will have no results other than a final defeat,” he said.
در بیروت با آقایان نجیب میقاتی، نخستوزیر دولت پیشبرد امور لبنان، نبیه بری، رئیس پارلمان، زی اد نخاله، دبیرکل جنبش جهاد اسلامی و برد قامات حماس ٨ ن دیدار کردم.
غ … pic.twitter.com/MT92FB1YGS— H.Amirabdollahian امیرعبداللهیان (@Amirabdolahian) February 10, 2024
During his visit, the Iranian diplomat met with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati, the speaker of the Lebanese Parliament, Ziad Nakhale, secretary general of the Islamic Jihad Movement, and some Hamas officials. He also met with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
'Arab problem that requires an Arab solution'
After his meetings in Lebanon, Amir-Abdollahian plans to visit the Syrian capital, Damascus, where Iran also reportedly exerts influence over other groups. He will then head to Qatar, which has been the main mediator between Israel and Hamas.
Some political analysts saw the Iranian Foreign Minister's trip to Lebanon and other countries in the region as a way to influence the outcome of negotiations on the Gaza war.
Iran was not represented in Saudi Arabia at a meeting Thursday where ministers from Arab nations discussed initiatives for Gaza after the war ends.
“Interestingly, the exclusion of Iran and the inclusion of Qatar is something we should take note of because the Saudis were saying that this is an Arab problem that requires Arab solutions. “Iran, of course, wants to have a say in what happens once the war is over,” Mehran Kamrava, a political analyst, told Al Jazeera.
On Saturday, Amir-Abdollahian said a political solution was the only way to end the Gaza conflict and that Tehran was in talks with Riyadh on the issue.
Reporting from Beirut, Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr said this is the Iranian Foreign Minister's third trip to the region since the war began and, this time, emphasized that Palestinians themselves must decide their future.
Furthermore, Khodr noted that his trip to Lebanon also coincided with the Israeli threat to expand its attacks against Hezbollah if it does not obtain security guarantees on the border.
After 17 years of relative calm along the Israel-Lebanon border, Hezbollah and the Israeli army began launching attacks in the area on October 8, a day after Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,100 people there, and Israel will launch a relentless attack on Gaza. which has killed more than 28,000 Palestinians.
Hezbollah officials have said they will stop attacking Israeli military posts when Israel's attack on Gaza ends.
On Friday, Amir-Abdollahian told reporters in Beirut that “Hezbollah and the resistance in Lebanon have bravely and wisely played their deterrent and effective role.”
He said Tehran will continue “its strong support for the resistance in Lebanon, as we consider the security of Lebanon as the security of Iran and the region.”
