Iran security chief vows continued support for Lebanon

BEIRUT - Iran’s top security chief vowed in Lebanon on Aug 13 that his government would continue to provide support, after the Lebanese government ordered the army to devise a plan to disarm Tehran-backed militant group Hezbollah.

Mr Ali Larijani’s trip to Lebanon comes after Iran expressed opposition to a government plan to disarm Hezbollah, which before a war with Israel last year was believed to be better armed than the Lebanese military.

“If... the Lebanese people are suffering, we in Iran will also feel this pain and we will stand by the dear people of Lebanon in all circumstances,” Mr Larijani, the head of the National Security Council, told reporters after landing in Beirut.

Dozens of Hezbollah supporters gathered along the airport road to welcome Mr Larijani. He briefly stepped out of his car to greet them as they chanted slogans of support.

In Lebanon, Mr Larijani is scheduled to meet President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, as well as Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, who is close to Hezbollah.

Iran has suffered a series of blows in its long-running rivalry with Israel, including during

12 days of open war between the two countries

in June.

Hezbollah’s grip on power has slipped since a war with Israel ended in a

November 2024 ceasefire

and the new Lebanese government, backed by the US, has moved to further restrain it.

Hezbollah is part of Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance” – a network of armed groups in the region, including Hamas in Gaza and Yemen’s Houthi rebels, united in their opposition to Israel.

The ouster in December of Mr Bashar al-Assad in Syria, which long served as a conduit for weapons deliveries between Iran and Hezbollah, cut off the supply route to Lebanon.

Iran has declared its firm opposition to the Lebanese government’s bid to disarm Hezbollah, while the movement itself has slammed the decision as a “grave sin”. AFP