Iran may have welcomed the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hezbollah but a senior Iranian diplomat has an interesting take on the agreement.
The Iranian ambassador to Spain Reza Zabib quoted none other than former United States Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to mock Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Stating that Netanyahu could not claim that the Hezbollah resistance movement got defeated in his war, Zabib quoted Kissinger on X: "The conventional army loses if it does not win. The guerrilla wins if he does not lose."
The diplomat argued that the resistance is a winner despite Hezbollah and Lebanon suffering heavy losses in Israeli attack
However, Iranian Foreign Ministry chose to welcome the pact, stating that "Tehran welcomes the end of the Israeli regime’s aggression against Lebanon as part of a ceasefire agreement."
Spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Iran's principal stance was always an immediate halt of the ongoing wars and that the country has made broad diplomatic efforts during the past 14 months to end the war in Gaza.
Northeners bash Netanyahu
While the world welcomed the ceasefire agreement, a section of people from the northern Israel fear the agreement could allow Hezbolla to regroup and rebuild.
The mayor of the northern city of Kiryat Shmona, Avihay Stern expressed strong opposition to the agreement, calling it a surrender. "Before signing what feels like a surrender agreement, I call on our leaders to look into the eyes of Kiryat Shmona’s children and think of their future," Stern said.
He said Israel has gone from total victory to total surrender. "Why not finish what we started? We’ve crushed Hezbollah, yet instead of dismantling it completely, we’re giving it the chance to recover. And what will our residents return to? A devastated city with no security and no future? This is madness," Stern warned.
Netanyahu claimed had claimed win in the war against Hezbollah, stating his troops inflicted heavy blows on Hezbollah.
A poll conducted by Israel's Channel 13 also showed that 60% of Israelis believe that Israel has not defeated the Lebanese Hezbollah in the war. As many as 44% of the respondents are in favor of putting an end to the war in Lebanon, the poll suggested.
