by Reuters and Israel Hayom Staff
"Hezbollah must be armed to fight against Lebanon's enemy, which is Israel. Naturally, they should have the best weapons to protect Lebanon's security," Revolutionary Guards chief Mohammad Ali Jafari says
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A Hezbollah fighter
stands guard with a missile positioned nearby
Archives: Reuters
Iran's
elite Revolutionary Guards will play an active role in establishing a
lasting "cease-fire" in war-torn Syria, its commander Maj. Gen. Mohammad
Ali Jafari said, adding that disarming Lebanon's Hezbollah was
nonnegotiable, state TV reported on Thursday.
"Hezbollah must be armed to fight against
Lebanon's enemy, which is Israel. Naturally, they should have the best
weapons to protect Lebanon's security. This issue is nonnegotiable," he
said.
Regional tensions have risen in recent
weeks between Sunni Muslim monarchy Saudi Arabia and Shiite Iran, whose
rivalry has wrought upheaval in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Bahrain.
Saudi Arabia has accused the heavily armed
Shiite terrorist group Hezbollah of helping Houthi forces in Yemen and
playing a role in a ballistic missile attack on the kingdom earlier this
month. Iran and Hezbollah both denied the claims.
Jafari repeated Iran's stance on its
disputed ballistic missile work, saying the Islamic republic's missile
program is for defensive purposes and not up for negotiation.
The program was not part of the 2015
nuclear deal with Western powers under which Iran agreed to curb its
nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some sanctions.
"Iran will not negotiate its defensive program. There will be no talks about it," he said.
"[French president Emmanuel] Macron's remarks over our missile work is because he is young and inexperienced."
Macron said earlier this month that Tehran
should be less aggressive in the region and should clarify the strategy
around its ballistic missile program.
Reuters and Israel Hayom Staff
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/2017/11/23/iranian-official-disarming-lebanons-hezbollah-nonnegotiable/
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