Iranian Clerics Make Anti-Israel Remarks On Hamas-Israel War
A wave of anti-Israeli remarks came on Friday from authorities in Iran days after a surprise attack by Hamas on Israel that killed and injured thousands.
A wave of anti-Israeli remarks came on Friday from authorities in Iran days after a surprise attack by Hamas on Israel that killed and injured thousands.
Hassan Rouhani, the former Iranian president, has issued a statement condemning Israel for declaring an all-out war against Hamas in Gaza where the militant Hamas group has its base.
Rouhani said that the current situation highlights the “suffering” endured by the “people of Palestine” inflicted by Israel’s “Zionist Regime for the past 75 years.”
The state of Israel was established in 1948 and recognized by the United States at the same time.
“Censorship of the truth, one sided accounts of events, and political and media repression,” Rouhani mentioned as examples of what the Palestinian people have had to deal with.
The former President's remark contrast with the behavior of the Iranian regime that has denied basic freedoms to Iranians for 44 years. It has killed thousands of protesters in recent years and jailed tens of thousands of people, in addition to thousands who have been hanged.
Meanwhile, a representative of Iran’s ruler Ali Khamenei in the southwest province of Khuzestan has also issued remarks praising Hamas’s attacks on Israel.
Abdolnabi Mousavi-Fard claimed that any scene of Hamas fighters using violence against Israeli civilians is fabricated. “My regret is that some people think Israelis are innocent,” he added.
The Islamic Republic is the main supporter of Palestinian militant group such as Hamas, leading to speculation about Iran’s direct involvement in the October 7 attack.
Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Thursday that the continuation of Hamas-Israel war will prompt a response from "the rest of the axis of resistance." The ‘resistance' front or axis is the term coined by the Islamic Republic to describe its logistic, financial and intelligence support for the Syrian regime, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, and dozens of militia groups in the region, several of which were created by Iran.
"This is just the beginning,” Iranian lawmaker Kamal Alipour told Didban Iran website, adding that “if the Supreme Leader orders, we will also have military support for Hamas." Referring to the Iraq-Iran war in the 1980s, he said that “Iran stood against Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein for eight years, therefore war against Israel is nothing in comparison to that.”
Alipour added, "Iran has provided consultation and military training to Hamas forces. Basically, the philosophical underpinning of our Islamic Revolution is to assist the oppressed and downtrodden people of Palestine."
His remarks were echoed by another lawmaker, Shahriar Heydari, who emphasized that Iran has backed Hamas through military training and advisory support, claiming that due to the blockade of Gaza, “sending weapons from Iran is not possible but if such an opportunity were available, we would provide our utmost support... In terms of military training, we have been and will remain a source of assistance."
"We have trained the resistance forces and Hamas to use missile technology, but these technologies belong to the Palestinians and the fighters themselves," he claimed.
While the Islamic Republic is cheering about the war in Israel, Iranians’ reactions to the regime’s propaganda indicate a complex societal schism. Countless posts sympathetic to Israelis who have suffered the biggest loss of life in one day since the holocaust are promoting hashtags such as “Iranians Stand With Israel.”
Numerous social media posts are encouraging people loyal to the regime to travel to Israel and support Hamas in the battlefield, suggesting that this might be the most direct path to becoming revered "martyrs" in their revolutionary ideology.
Regime-sponsored rallies were also held on Friday across Iran in solidarity with the Hamas attack, praising the “miraculous and wonderful operation” that made “terror and fear engulf” Israel.
The Iranian foreign minister, in Beirut on a tour of Iraq, Lebanon and Syria, was received at the airport by top officials of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah. "Some Western officials have questioned if there is an intention to open a new front against the Zionist entity. Of course, in light of the continuation of these circumstances that are war crimes,” he said, referring to the displacement of Palestinians and cutting water and electricity to the Gaza Strip.
Western governments and media are questioning Iran’s role in the Hamas attack and its long-standing financial and military support for militant groups in the region. The Iranian foreign minister’s remarks push Tehran further to the forefront of the conflict.
Israel has been pounding Gaza in retaliation for the Hamas rampage in Israel this week that has killed well over 1,000 civilians, the deadliest attack on civilians in Israeli history. More than 1,500 Palestinians have been killed.
