Iran foreign minister greets new Lebanese government

By Wasim Sayfuddin

BEIRUT

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif met Prime Minister Saad Hariri on Tuesday on the second day of a visit to Beirut.

On Monday, Zarif was the first foreign minister to arrive in Lebanon to congratulate President Michel Aoun, who was appointed last week.

Emphasizing Iran’s bond with Lebanon, he told Hariri that both countries were “under the zionist and takfiri threats”. A takfiri is a Muslim who accuses other Muslims of apostasy and has come to refer to groups like Daesh and al-Qaeda.

He added: “We are ready to work with all Lebanese factions in order to confront these dangers.”

Zarif also visited Parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri. “We hope for the new government to be quickly born through cooperation that we look forward to see in the whole region,” Zarif said.

Zarif is accompanied with by a 45-strong economic and political delegation during his trip to Lebanon, where Iran has long backed Hezbollah.