Iranian regime celebrates Lebanon ceasefire as ‘victory,’ suggests it could delay new attack on Israel

With the ceasefire entering its second day, Iranian officials declared the ceasefire in Lebanon to be a victory that “shattered the myth of Israel’s invincibility.” Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi indicated that this development could postpone a new direct attack on Israel.

“Over the past year, [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu has milked US taxpayers of tens of billions of dollars to fund his war crimes, all while enjoying full US military support and political cover,” Araghchi wrote on 𝕏.

“He was still forced to plead for a ceasefire, after heavy casualties in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah once again shattered [the] myth of Israel’s invincibility,” he stated, adding, “It is high time for Israel to accept defeat in Gaza too.”

Despite the boastful rhetoric from Iran, Reuters reported on Thursday that Hezbollah lost over 4,000 fighters during the last two months of conflict – more than 10 times the number it lost in the 2006 Second Lebanon War.

The World Bank estimated that the conflict caused approximately $2.8 billion in damage to housing across the country, with approximately 99,000 homes either partially or completely destroyed.

On Wednesday, Araghchi suggested that the ceasefire in Lebanon could serve to de-escalate tensions between Iran and Israel, but cautioned, “It depends on the behavior of Israel.”

“Of course, we reserve the right to react to the recent Israeli aggression, but we do consider all developments in the region,” he said.

A few days earlier, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s senior advisor, Ali Larijani, said that the regime was still planning its response to Israel’s strikes in October.

According to the regime-affiliated Tasnim News, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Maj.-Gen. Hossein Salami, congratulated the Lebanese government and the “resistance movement” for “imposing a ceasefire on Israel.”

“The ceasefire on the Lebanese front is a strategic and humiliating defeat for the Zionist regime, which did not even come close to achieving any of its evil goals and ambitions in the war against Hezbollah,” the general wrote in a letter to Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem.

He added that the ceasefire could also “even mark the beginning of a ceasefire to end the war on Gaza.”

Earlier this month, the New York Times reported that the regime had urged its Hezbollah leaders to accept a ceasefire. Larijani reportedly pressured the terror group to agree, assuring them that Iran would assist in rebuilding its capabilities after the war.

Despite Iran's desire for Hezbollah to consent to a ceasefire, the regime’s other regional proxies vowed to continue the fight against Israel.

On Thursday, leaders of the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq” terror group told the Hezbollah-affiliated Al-Akhbar newspaper that the ceasefire holds no significance for them, and vowed to continue attacking Israel.

“At the last meeting of the resistance, it was agreed to continue the attacks against Israel - until it completely stops the attacks in Gaza and stops threatening to attack Iran,” the leaders told the newspaper.