Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, condemned Israel on Saturday for its airstrikes in Lebanon, calling them a “massacre” following the Israeli attack that reportedly killed Hezbollah’s leader.
Lebanon’s health ministry reported that at least six people were killed and 91 injured in the strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, which are known as Hezbollah strongholds.
The violence, which began on Friday, has marked the heaviest attacks in the area since the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah.
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The ministry noted that hundreds had died in the Israeli air raids since Monday, marking the deadliest escalation since Lebanon’s 1975-1990 civil war, as Hezbollah and Israel exchanged fire across the border.
Khamenei described Israel’s actions as exposing the “short-sighted and foolish policy” of the Israeli leadership, referring to the strikes as a brutal massacre of innocent civilians.
Though he did not directly mention Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, Khamenei expressed confidence that Israel was too weak to make any real impact on Hezbollah’s fortified presence in Lebanon.
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While Israel claimed that Nasrallah had been killed in the recent strike, Hezbollah has not confirmed the report.
A source close to the group said that contact with Nasrallah had been lost since Friday night.
Despite this, Khamenei expressed support for Hezbollah and urged the “Axis of Resistance”—Iran-backed groups across the Middle East—to rally behind them in their struggle against Israel.
“Lebanon will make the aggressor regret,” Khamenei said, signaling Iran’s continued backing for Hezbollah.
