The speaker of the Iranian parliament told his Lebanese counterpart that Tehran is ‘trying’ to force the US and Israel to establish a permanent ceasefire in all conflict areas.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the chief speaker of Iran’s parliament, told his Lebanese counterpart that the ceasefire in Lebanon is as “important” as that of Iran, according to a statement posted on Telegram.
In talks to end the war between Iran and the United States, Ghalibaf wrote on Thursday that Tehran is “attempting to force our enemies to establish a permanent ceasefire in all conflict areas, in accordance with the agreement”.
“For us, the ceasefire in Lebanon is as important as the ceasefire in Iran,” he told Lebanon’s Nabih Berri in a phone conversation.
Ghalibaf led the Iranian delegation to the first US-Iran meeting in Pakistan last week, which ended without an agreement.
Tehran has consistently said the Iran ceasefire should also apply to Lebanon, with the US and Israel claiming it is not part of the agreement.
The post on Telegram said Ghalibaf told Berri that the Iranians “have never forgotten our Lebanese brothers and consider them among us”.
The speaker of the Lebanese parliament then detailed the latest Israeli attacks on Lebanon, the post continued, and told Ghalibaf that 1.2 million Lebanese people have so far been displaced by the fighting.
“Israel is literally committing crimes in our country and seeks to displace the Lebanese people,” the Post quoted Berri as saying.
Berri told Ghalibaf, “Any official communication and consultation with the Zionist regime (Israel) is certainly not in the interests of the Lebanese people.” He said he appreciated Iran’s efforts to help ensure a ceasefire in Lebanon.
Lebanon was drawn into the US–Israel war over Iran on March 2, after Tehran-aligned Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel.
Hezbollah said the attacks were in retaliation for Israel’s assassination of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on February 28, the first day of the war, as well as Israel’s near-daily violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon through November 2024.
Since then, Israeli forces have killed more than 2,000 people in Lebanon.
Late Wednesday, US President Donald Trump announced that the leaders of Israel and Lebanon would speak to each other on Thursday for the first time in 34 years. Although an Israeli official confirmed the reports, the Lebanese government has yet to comment.
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