Mojtaba Khamenei praises Hezbollah, calls for continued jihad, attacks against Israel

Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei praised Hezbollah and called for continued jihad against Israel and the US in statements released Sunday. He asserted that 'there remains no path forward except jihad and resistance,' described Hezbollah's commitment as an 'inspiring message,' and said defense of Hezbollah is Iran's 'strategic mandate.' He also linked a peace agreement with the US to halting Israeli operations against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.

Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei praised Hezbollah and called for continued jihadist attacks against Israel in a series of statements attributed to him on Sunday. The statements were released in response to a Hezbollah letter pledging allegiance to Iran's Islamic Republic. Khamenei asserted that 'there remains no path forward except jihad and resistance' against the US and Israel. He claimed Hezbollah's commitment to terrorism has 'become an inspiring message' for those seeking 'liberation from global arrogance' and 'divine victory.' Khamenei stated that defense of Hezbollah is Iran's 'strategic mandate,' in line with policy set by his father, former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He also allegedly asserted that Iran's primary condition for a peace agreement with the US is the halting of all Israeli operations against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Khamenei lamented the killing of former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, killed by Israeli strikes in 2024, describing him as 'Hezbollah's master of martyrs' and crediting him with growing Hezbollah from a 'sapling of Islamic resistance into a mighty tree.'