Lebanon Ceasefire Takes Effect... Iran "Welcomes Israel's Halt of Attacks"

As Israel and the Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah entered a temporary ceasefire on the 27th (local time), Iran expressed its welcome.

AP Yonhap News

According to AFP, Esmail Baghaei, spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated in a press release that he "welcomes" the news of the halt of Israel's invasion of Lebanon. He also reaffirmed "firm support for the resistance of the Lebanese government and people." Iran, the core of the so-called 'Axis of Resistance,' has directly and indirectly supported Hezbollah, the Palestinian militant group Hamas, and the Iran-aligned Yemeni militant group Houthis.

The day before, Israel and Hezbollah abruptly agreed on a ceasefire plan consisting of 13 articles, including a cessation of hostilities. The ceasefire plan includes provisions for Israel and Hezbollah to suspend military actions against each other for 60 days and to recognize the importance of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701. This came into effect at 4 a.m. local time on the 27th.

This ceasefire agreement was reached about 13 months after Israel was caught off guard by an attack from Hamas in October last year and began fighting with Hezbollah. It has been about two months since the Israeli military launched the so-called 'Arrow of the North' operation targeting Hezbollah and entered ground combat in Lebanon.

Tohid Asadi, an Iran expert, told Al Jazeera in an interview that Iranian leaders are closely monitoring the Lebanon ceasefire. He said Tehran's top priority is "to what extent this will lead to a reduction in tensions," and assessed that "(Iran) hopes the situation will not worsen or escalate into a full-scale war scenario."