If there is a war, five countries will side with Iran. Who exactly?

After the assassination in Tehran of the head of the political bureau of the Palestinian Hamas group Ismail Haniyeh, Iran's spiritual leader Ayatollah Khamenei promised to take revenge on Israel for his death. Pravda.Ru offers an analysis of the situation and forecasts from political scientist, expert on the Middle East Mais Kurbanov.

— The murder of Haniyeh, who came to Tehran for the inauguration of the new President of Iran, Massoud Peseshkian, has become symbolic. Why did Israel escalate the situation, because many experts considered the new head of the Islamic republic to be a politician of almost pro-Western views?

— What happened in Iran, the assassination of the head of one state on the territory of another, is an unprecedented case. This blow indicates that any leader can be eliminated. It turns out that in a state that currently does not have air defense, you should not go on a business visit. Terrorism exists everywhere, it must be fought with joint efforts, otherwise leaders around the world may be eliminated.

— Masud Pezeshkian is a liberal. But now in There is a tendency in Iran to unite liberals and conservatives. They have a lot in common, because for 45 years Iran has been able to educate religious, spiritual people who look at democracy differently and perceive the world. They love Iran and are ready to give their lives for its preservation.

Iran is an ancient state that has absorbed many cultures, in which religious spirituality is at the highest level and which is currently one of the leading states in the world, especially in the Middle East. The country is ruled by Ayatollah Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, and the highest spiritual elite. The presidents obey them, and together they fight together against common enemies. There was and cannot be any disagreement between them, because the supreme spiritual leader has great power in Iran.

There are disagreements in every house, but here it is rather a path to development, to understanding what shortcomings there are in these organizations themselves. Masoud Peseshkian is loyal to the spiritual leader, because the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran obliges every president to listen to his opinion.

— Iran's spiritual leader Khamenei made a very important statement: he promised to take revenge on Israel for the death of Haniyeh. In your opinion, what will Tehran's military response be, given that Israel and the United States regularly destroy Iranian military commanders?

— American warships are approaching the Middle East. America, Britain and NATO do not hide that they are ready to support Israel. Iran and its allies will support the situation that currently exists in the Palestine should support Hamas and attack Israel. This will lead to the third World War.

But this does not mean, as the old wisdom says, that if a dog bites you, you should definitely bite it back. Iran is an ancient, wise state, it will try to solve this problem in some way.

When Iran says something, it then does it: we saw how they bombed American bases in In Iraq, Israel itself was bombed. But Iran avoids war, does not want to be an aggressor, even though Israel provokes it. Israel has very few chances, the initiative is intercepted by neighboring Arab states. They see: yeah, you can fight, Israel is not invincible.

— Who could become an ally of Iran if hostilities do begin?

— Russia, China and North Korea are following the events. They know that if Iran loses, it will be their turn. Naturally, they will not sit idly by, they will act. I know that if Iran is attacked, Russia, China, North Korea will directly defend it. And why then the BRICS and the SCO? To be together in a difficult moment.

I think Cuba will join Iran and Venezuela, because we need to act at the same time. We have already seen NATO forces in Afghanistan. They're no good for anything. We see how they support the mode on In Ukraine, they are attacking Russia. And they don't win anything, they only lose. If all states join in, you can very easily defeat the Anglo-Saxons, the Americans.

— I would add Yemeni Houthis, Hezbollah, Lebanese groups. Israel staged a provocation to justify its invasion of Lebanon...

— The whole world sees that the provocation is at the highest level. Israel wants to expose Lebanon, Iran, and the Houthis as aggressors, although these states are defending themselves. They haven't attacked anyone else. They literally freed themselves from European occupation half a century ago. And they only wanted to create their own states. If the war starts, they can easily defeat Israel. But we must not forget that the Americans, the United Kingdom, and Europe openly declare that they will support the Zionist regime in every possible way.

— In your opinion, can Ankara enter into a military alliance with Iran?

— Turkey and Iran is no longer allies, they are rivals. But when you look carefully and observe, in the end you see that they are allies.

— What should we expect — a big war or demonstrative strikes and another lull?

— Iran and its allies do not want war. The main enemy for Iran is not Israel, but America, which Iran considers Satan. But in order to fight America or defeat it, Iran needs time, an arsenal, good air defense, good aviation.

Iran needs to buy time and not succumb to provocations. There have been a lot of martyrs in the history of mankind. Ismail Haniyeh is a great man, a hero of our era.