TEHRAN – Iranian MPs wrote a letter to Hezbollah Secretary General Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah on Monday reaffirming the Islamic Republic’s support for the Lebanese resistance group.

The letter, signed by 251 legislators, followed the death of top Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddine in Syria.

The MPs expressed condolences over the martyrdom of Badreddine.

“Fighting the occupying Zionists and Takfiri groups is the art of the great men and today Hezbollah is shining like a sun in the sky of jihad and resistance by leadership of you and the sparkle of its lights will shine the world,” the letter read out.

Badreddine was martyred in a blast at a base near Damascus airport by artillery shells, Hezbollah said on Friday.

“Investigations have showed that the explosion, which targeted one of our bases near Damascus International Airport, and which led to the martyrdom of Commander Mustafa Badreddine, was the result of artillery bombardment carried out by takfiri groups in the area,” Hezbollah said in a statement.

The statement said the death "will increase our determination... to continue the fight against these criminal gangs and defeat them".

On Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also wrote a letter of condolence to Nasrallah, relaying to him “that martyrdom of this great commander Mustafa will further strengthen resistance forces against the Zionist and terrorism.”

Other Iranian officials including Defense Minister Hossein Dehqan, Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani, senior politician Ali Akbar Velayati, and Ahmad Vahidi former defense minister and current chief of the Strategic Center of the General Staff of the Armed Forces have sent messages offering condolences over the death of the commander.

According to the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, IRGC Quds Force chief General Qassem Soleimani has said the death of Badreddine is a loss for the Islamic ummah. The general made remarks after he met with the family of Badreddine in Beirut on Saturday night.

Badreddine was believed to have commanded Hezbollah's military operations in Syria.

NA/PA