Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Saturday congratulated Iranian president-elect Masoud Pezeshkian on his victory , emphasizing Tehran's role as a "strong" supporter of regional "resistance" groups, AFP reported. Pezeshkian, branded a reformist, defeated former Iranian nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili in the runoff which was held on Friday. In a letter circulated on Hezbollah’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, as quoted by AFP . Iran provides financial and military support to Hezbollah, which was created at the initiative of Iran's Revolutionary Guards in 1982. The Shiite group is a key part of the so-called Axis of Resistance -- an alliance of pro-Iran armed movements that oppose Israel and the United States. The alliance also includes Hamas, Yemen's Houthi rebels and fighters in Iraq. Pezeshkian won 16.3 million votes in the runoff, local reports said, adding that the turnout for the elections was just 49.8%. Jalili received 13.5 million votes. Pezeshkian has been an Iranian MP since 2008, and serves as a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly and the vice speaker of parliament. Among his stated goals is to improve Iran's relationships with the West but that, however, does not include Israel. On the day of the first round of the elections, responding to a question from a journalist about how Iran would manage international relations if he were president, Pezeshkian replied , “God willing, we will try to have friendly relations with all countries except Israel.” Pezeshkian’s anti-Israel comments are not surprising, as both moderates and hardliners have long been critical of Israel. The country’s most recent “moderate” President was Hassan Rouhani, who was first elected in 2013 and reelected four years later . Shortly after being elected in 2013, Rouhani called Israel an "old wound" that "should be removed". Iranian media later claimed that Rouhani’s remarks were distorted. Related articles: May we have good relations with all countries except Israel Iran condemns US 'interference' in its affairs Khamenei: 'Zionists' are watching our elections Rouhani blasts anti-Israel messages on missiles In 2018, Rouhani said that Israel “can never feel safe” because it is “oppressing the Palestinian nation. He later called Israel a "cancerous tumor" and urged Muslim nations worldwide to unite and destroy Israel.
