Hezbollah: Iran's Rowhani beacon of hope

Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah, a close ally of Tehran, welcomed the election of Hassan Rowhani as Iran's new president on Sunday, calling him a "beacon of hope". "The Arab and Muslim people... who have always seen the Islamic republic as a supporter of the oppressed... and every fighter who resists for God, consider you today a beacon of hope," the group said. Rowhani, a cleric viewed as a moderate political figure, was declared the winner of Iran's presidential election on Saturday. Iran is Hezbollah's biggest backer and supporter, and has also thrown its weight behind the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, helping it battle an uprising now in its third year. Hezbollah is both financed and armed by Iran, with much of that support channelled through Damascus, and the group has dispatched its fighters to Syria to battle rebel forces alongside the Syrian army. Earlier this year, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said Syria's "friends," including Iran, would not allow the Syrian regime of Assad to fall.