(JNS) A senior Iranian official recently praised and encouraged Palestinian and Lebanese terror groups’ attacks on Israel, according to Iranian media reports.

Ali Akbar Velayati, a senior adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, spoke with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, Islamic Jihad Secretary General Ziad al-Nakhala and Sheikh Naim Qassem, second in command of Hezbollah, in a series of phone calls in recent weeks, according to the reports.

“We are very pleased with your recent victories, and hope for these victories to continue,” he told Haniyeh. “Whatever effort the Zionist regime puts into preserving itself is met with defeat, and it will eventually be faced with more challenges and frustrations,” Velayati asserted.

For their part, the terror leaders thanked Iran for its support. Qassem said that Iran’s backing has “undoubtedly had an important role in these victories.”

On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant charged the Islamic Republic with orchestrating the most recent surge in Palestinian terrorism, which saw three Israelis killed and one seriously wounded in just under 72 hours.

“We are in the midst of a terror onslaught that is being encouraged, directed and financed by Iran and its proxies,” said Netanyahu following a situational assessment at the site of one of the attacks near Hebron in Judea.

“It is important to understand the significant change that is taking place on the ground; it is related to Iranian funding and to the proliferation of weapons under the Iranian directive. Iran seeks every means to harm the citizens of Israel,” added Gallant, warning Tehran that “all options are on the table.”