Iran condemned a decision by the [Persian] Gulf Cooperation Council to blacklist Lebanon's Hezbollah, saying the resistance movement is a "potent symbol" of struggles against terror and Israeli occupation.
Foreign Ministry spokesman, Hossein Jaberi Ansari, on Thursday praised Lebanon's Hezbollah as the "embodiment of resistance against Zionist occupation and racism", Press TV reported.
Ansari said Hezbollah represents the Muslim world's struggles to achieve independence, freedom, justice and fight against Takfiri terrorism as well as the Israeli regime's oppression, occupation and racism. A Takfiri accuses followers of some Islamic sects of heresy. On Wednesday, the six-nation Arab bloc, which comprises Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, decided to label Hezbollah a terrorist organization.
The Iranian official said certain Arab countries' differences with the Lebanese resistance movement do not justify their move to work in unison and solidarity with the Israeli regime in blacklisting Hezbollah. Those who disseminate such false propaganda to pile pressure on other governments are "knowingly or unknowingly" undermining the interests of Muslim nations, Jaberi Ansari added.
Earlier in the day, Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said branding Hezbollah as a terrorist group is a "new mistake" that will undermine peace in the region and unity in Lebanon.
"We are proud of Lebanon's Hezbollah as the vanguard of resistance against the Zionist regime and the champion of the fight against terrorism in the region," he said.
Last month, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain also called on their citizens to leave Lebanon or to avoid travelling there.
The moves by the Arab bloc came days after Riyadh halted $4 billion in aid to Lebanese security forces. The decision followed recent victories by the Syrian Army, backed by Hezbollah fighters, against the militants fighting to topple the Damascus government.
Hezbollah Secretary-General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah has said the Saudi regime seeks to instigate "strife" between Shias and Sunnis in the region, urging the Lebanese not to be intimidated by threats posed by Riyadh and Tel Aviv.
