Ayatollah Khamenei Receives Assad for Condolences

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has received President Bashar al-Assad who has traveled to Tehran to offer condolences over the loss of President Ebrahim Raeisi and his companions in a helicopter crash.

Ayatollah Khamenei hailed Syria's "distinguished identity" in the region, saying it is owed to the Syrian nation's resistance.

"Syria's special position in the region is distinguished because of this identity, and this important feature must be preserved," he told the Syrian president.

The distinguished identity of Syria, the Leader said, was formed during the late Hafez Assad's era with the founding of the resistance front and standing against the West.

Ayatollah Khamenei also lauded President Assad for his firm stand, saying "everyone should see the special privilege of the Syrian government, that is, resistance, in front of their eyes".

In his meeting with Ayatollah Khamenei, President Assad expressed his condolences to the Leader, the government and the Iranian nation over the recent loss.

"Iran-Syria relations are a strategic relationship that is progressing under the guidance of Your Excellency," he told Ayatollah Khamenei.

President Raeisi and the late Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian were at the helm of the implementation of this guidance, Assad added.

Assad touched on President Raeisi's "humble, wise and ethical character", calling him a clear example of the positions and slogans of the Islamic Revolution.

"Mr. Raeisi had an important impact on the role of the Islamic Republic in the region and the Palestinian issue in the past three years, as well as deepening relations between Iran and Syria," he said.

President Assad also thanked the Leader of the Islamic Revolution for his "prominent and important role in supporting the resistance in the region and also for supporting Syria in all arenas".