Lebanon visit:

Iran hails ‘resistance’

LEBANON: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hailed Wednesday Lebanon’s resistance against Israeli “aggression” as he began a visit that will take him to the border of the Jewish state.

He was showered with rice and rose petals by tens of thousands of Hezbollah supporters who lined the roads as his motorcade made its way from the airport to the presidential palace.

“We fully support the resistance of the Lebanese people against the Zionist regime and we want full liberation of occupied territory in Lebanon, Syria and Palestine,” the hardline leader said at a press conference with his Lebanese counterpart, Michel Sleiman. “As long as (Israeli) aggression exists in the region, we will not see stability,” he added.

Ahmadinejad, whose two-day visit is seen as a boost for key ally Hezbollah, the most powerful military and political force in Lebanon, said Iran stood ready to assist the small Mediterranean country in all fields.

The two leaders signed a number of agreements in the health, tourism, energy, water and other sectors.

“Lebanon is not only a source of pride for the Lebanese but for the region,” he added. “Because Lebanon has changed the balance of power in favour of the people of the region.”

Hezbollah fought a devastating war with Israel in 2006 that killed 1,200 people in Lebanon, most of them civilians, and more than 160 Israelis, most of them soldiers. Beirut, Thursday, AFP