Iran says Gaza ceasefire is a ‘victory’ for Palestinian resistance

DUBAI (Reuters) – The ceasefire in Gaza represents a “great victory” for the Palestinian resistance, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Thursday, warning against any possible breach by Israel.

Palestinian armed group Hamas and Israel reached a deal for a ceasefire in Gaza that mediators said would take effect on Sunday. The agreement provides for the release of Israeli hostages held there during 15 months of conflict that devastated the enclave and killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.

“The end of the war and the imposition of a ceasefire on the Zionist regime (Israel) is a clear and great victory for Palestine and a greater defeat for the Zionist regime,” a statement by the Guards said.

Iran and its allied non-state armed groups in the region such as Yemen’s Houthis and Lebanon’s Hezbollah have supported Hamas throughout the conflict.

“The resistance remains alive, thriving, strong […] and has deeper faith in the divine promise of liberating the al-Aqsa mosque and Jerusalem,” the Guards said, warning against any breach of the ceasefire by Israel and saying they maintain field preparations to confront “new wars and crimes.”

On X, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the Palestinian resistance and Iran-backed “Resistance Axis” succeeded in forcing Israel to “retreat.”

The war in Gaza stoked conflict in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, in Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iraq, and raised fears of all-out war between arch regional foes Israel and Iran.

In November, Hezbollah and Israel agreed to a ceasefire weeks after the conflict escalated and led to the killing of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in an Israeli air strike in Beirut.

Western officials, including White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, have said the war opposing Israel and the Iranian-backed “Resistance Axis” significantly weakened Tehran.

Revolutionary Guards top commander Hossein Salami said last week that Iran’s enemies are having a “false sense of delight” about recent regional developments, and that Tehran’s missile forces are stronger than ever.

(Reporting by Dubai Newsroom; Editing by Kim Coghill, William Maclean)

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