DUBAI, July 8. /TASS/. Iran will provide assistance to Lebanon if it is attacked by Israel, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanani said.

"Any aggression against Lebanon will lead to instability and escalation of tensions in the region. The Zionists' (meaning Israel - TASS) forays could affect the whole world and the region, but history has shown that Lebanon can ensure its security. Iran considers one of the principles [of its foreign policy] to support Lebanon and considers the possibility of providing assistance to Lebanon, when necessary," the diplomat said at the first press conference after the election of the new Iranian president broadcast by the IRIB TV channel.

Thus Kanani commented on the statement of Kamal Kharazi, advisor to Iran's spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and head of Iran's Strategic Council for Foreign Relations. On July 2, Kharazi said that Tehran would support the Shiite Hezbollah movement with all its might if Israel launches a full-scale war against Lebanon.

In mid-June, the Israeli army approved an operational plan for an offensive in Lebanon. The Israeli authorities, following their operation against the radical Palestinian Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip, expect to simultaneously strike Hezbollah forces, which, like Hamas, operate against Israel, regularly shelling the territory of the Jewish State. Since October 2023, the intensity of Israeli army strikes against Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon has intensified.

The second round of the extraordinary presidential election in Iran, scheduled after the death of the head of the executive branch Ebrahim Raisi, was held on July 5. The reformist wing candidate, former health minister Masoud Pezeshkian, won with 53.6% of the vote. Conservative Saeed Jalili received 44.3% of the vote.