Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi (File)

Tehran, July 1 (RHC)-- The Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces has expressed gratitude to Pakistan for standing by the Islamic Republic amid the 12-day aggression imposed on the country by the United States and Israel.

Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi, in a phone call with Pakistan’s Chief of the Army Staff General Asim Munir on Sunday, praised Islamabad’s “courageous stance.”  The top Iranian commander also thanked the people of Pakistan for their “bold positions” in response to the Zionist regime's unprovoked aggression against the Iranian people.

Islamabad voiced strong support for Tehran when the Israeli regime unleashed its brutal aggression on the Islamic Republic on June 13, assassinating Iran's senior military commanders and nuclear scientists in targeted strikes, and killing ordinary civilians, including women and children.

During the 12-day aggression, General Mousavi said, U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration “spared no effort in assisting the Zionist regime.”

On June 22, the U.S. intervened directly by attacking Iran’s three civilian nuclear facilities in Isfahan, Natanz, and Fordow—all of which operate under the safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

“In addition to taking part in the aggression, it [Washington] employed all its capabilities to defend the regime against Iran’s missile and drone attacks,” General Mousavi said.  “Alongside the U.S.,” the military chief said, “several other Western countries also provided verbal and practical support to the enemy.”

The commander said, “Despite the losses we suffered — especially the martyrdom of some of our senior and capable commanders at the beginning of this war — we prevented the enemy from achieving its goals, to the point that they were forced to request a ceasefire.”

Israel unilaterally halted its aggression on Iran on June 23rd, after Trump announced a ceasefire, which, according to military analysts, the Tel Aviv regime had to accept to “save” itself as the aggression it launched exceeded its capabilities.

[ SOURCE: PRESS TV and NEWS AGENCIES ]