Mohsen Rezaei, a member of Iran’s Expediency Council, made the remarks during a funeral service for unidentified Iranian martyrs in Kerman.
Rezaei stressed that Tel Aviv is making a mistake in believing that the assassination could weaken the region’s resistance movement. He claimed that each of the slain commanders brought Israel “one step closer to its own demise,” emphasizing that these men were leaders rooted in the will of the people, not state-appointed officials.
Israel launched a “treacherous attack” on a residential apartment building in Dahieh, a southern suburb of Beirut, on Sunday, killing at least five people, including senior Hezbollah commander Haysam Ali Tabatabai and four resistance fighters. Twenty-eight people, including women and children, were also injured.
Rezaei said the Lebanese resistance has grown stronger even after the killing of Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. While he noted that Iran does not dictate decisions to other countries, he said the Lebanese resistance force may need to reevaluate its strategy of patience and restraint, as Israel is abusing patience and restraint.
Reflecting on the recent 12-day war on Iran imposed by Israel, Rezaei said the resilience of the people saved the country from suffering the fate of a World War II-era occupation, adding that without such sacrifices Iran might have faced catastrophic consequences.
On June 13, while Washington and Tehran were in the process of nuclear negotiations, Israel launched a blatant and unprovoked invasion of Iran. The Israeli attack sparked a 12-day war that left at least 1,064 people dead in the country, including military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians.
The United States also entered the war by bombing three Iranian nuclear facilities in a serious violation of international law.
In response, Iranian forces targeted strategic locations throughout the occupied territories, as well as Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the largest US military base in West Asia.
On June 24, Iran successfully thwarted the invasion through successful retaliatory operations against both the Israeli regime and the United States.
MNA/IRN86005484