Gaza Would Have Been Occupied without Iran’s Support, Cleric Says
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A top Iranian cleric said that had it not been for Iran’s support for Gaza, the entire coastal enclave would have been occupied by the Zionist regime of Israel.
“The Islamic Iran is proud of its all-out support for Palestine,” Tehran’s Provisional Friday Prayers Leader Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami said Friday, adding “If it had not been for Iran’s proper supports, the Zionist regime would have (been able to) occupy the entire Gaza (Strip) today”.
He noted that according to the Zionist regime’s interior minister, the order had been issued for the Israeli forces to occupy Gaza “but you can see now that they have become grounded (there)… and the Zionist regime is desperately seeking a ceasefire”.
Ayatollah Khatami underlined that the Palestinian Resistance Movement would not agree to a ceasefire until its demands, including the release of Palestinian prisoners and an end to the Gaza blockade, are met.
Earlier and in a Wednesday speech Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Imam Khamenei also highlighted Tel Aviv’s desperation for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Imam Khamenei referred to Israel’s efforts to broker a truce with Palestinian fighters, saying the regime “which commits crimes beyond human imagination has become desperate” after facing strong resistance from Palestinians.
Ayatollah Khatami, elsewhere in his Friday prayers sermon, referred to the issue of Palestine and support for the oppressed Palestinian nation as a pivot of the Iranian nation’s unity.
He added that all Iranian groups, factions and political figures with various political inclinations got united and participated in Friday’s rallies marking the International Quds Day.
Iranians of different social strata held massive rallies all over the country on Friday morning to mark the International Quds Day in a show of support for the oppressed nation of Palestine.
The huge demonstrations saw Iranians venting their anger on the Tel Aviv regime and its allies and calling for an end to the Israeli attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip.
Carrying placards and chanting slogans against Israel and the US, marchers voiced their support for the people of Gaza, and reiterated their opposition to the occupation of the Palestinian territories by the Zionists.
Each year, the International Quds Day is celebrated on the last Friday of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.
This year's rallies came against the backdrop of a massive Israeli onslaught on the besieged Gaza Strip.
As the 18-day Israeli offensive on Gaza rages on, above 800 Palestinians have been killed, and over 5,200 other injured in the besieged enclave.
