Introduction
Influenced by the Iranian regime's predicament vis-à-vis the Sunni world due to the Iraqi and Syrian crises,[1] senior Iranian officials have assailed the Arab countries for keeping silent about the Israeli attack in Gaza. The officials argued that the Arab states were thus effectively collaborating with Israel and urged them to come to their senses and assist Hamas and the resistance.
Alongside calls for Israel's destruction by senior regime officials and their mouth pieces, Tehran backed the Hamas decision to reject the Egyptian cease-fire initiative. Hossein Al-Islam, the secretary-general of the Iranian Association for Supporting the Palestinian Intifada and an advisor to Iranian Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani, defended Hamas' refusal saying that the Egyptian proposal sought to destroy the capabilities of the resistance organizations in Gaza. He explained that the only available option was for Israeli residents to return to the countries from which they came, claiming that the Iron Dome system, along with Israel's security concepts, had collapsed thanks to the resistance's missile capability in Gaza. Other Iranian officials repeated the directives of Ayatollah Khomeini and his successor, Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei, and claimed that Israel's destruction was imminent.
As part of Iran’s aspirations to regional hegemony and in the face of the passivity of the Arab rulers, the daily Javan, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), stated, with pride, that Iran had armed the resistance in Gaza with Fajr 5 missiles and with drones to help fight Israel and gave Iran credit for its success.
It was also reported that Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani spoke by telephone with Hamas Political Bureau chief Khaled Mash'al, who thanked him for Iran's support, and with Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Ramadan 'Abdallah Shalah, immediately after the launch of Israel's ground attack on the evening of July 17, 2014.[2]
Calls For The Destruction Of Israel
On July 20, 2014, the daily Jomhouri-ye Eslami, affiliated with Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, the chairman of the Expediency Council and the patron of President Hassan Rohani, called for the destruction of Israel:
"The crimes that the Zionist regime is committing these days in Gaza are rare in history… because the international governments and forums encourage it to continue them, through their support or silence… Imam Khomeini had already warned the governments and nations of Islam against the danger of Israel… saying that if they would not dry up the roots of this malignant growth in the region, it would exact victims from all nations of the region… Imam Khomeini called America and Britain supporters of Israel and partners to the crime of this germ of corruption, and declared that the path to salvation for the Islamic nations and for the other subjugated nations is through incessant struggle against the criminal governments.
Imam Khomeini continued to warn against the Zionist regime and its supporters to his very last day, and later, the most senior echelon in the Islamic Republic – i.e., the leader [Khamenei] – continued with these warnings and with the policy of fighting the danger posed by Israel and its supporters… It is, therefore, necessary to continue the policy of struggle until Israel is eradicated from the region.
When Imam Khomeini firmly declared that Israel must be wiped off the world's map, some may have had difficulty accepting this policy. Today, however, everyone understands that there is no alternative for this occupying regime other than this fate… Unfortunately, the Muslim and Arab governments… do nothing for the people of Gaza."[3]
In a July 18, 2014 Friday sermon in Tehran, regime spokesperson Kazem Sedighi also called for the destruction of Israel: "This pitiful population [in Israel] sits on a powder keg and is in danger of total annihilation, and with God's help its annihilation will take place soon."[4]
On July 14, 2014, Guardian Council Secretary Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati stated: "The reactionary leaders of the Arab countries… closed their eyes to the widespread crimes of the Zionists and do not provide [even] minimal support to the subjugated people in Gaza… But the people in Gaza should know… that we will not forget them, that we will always support them, that we view resistance and unity as the only way to confront the criminal Israel, and that we believe in God's promise that truth will vanquish falsehood. With the grace of God, the annihilation of this malignant growth is imminent."[5]
Senior Iranian Officials: Unite Against Israel, Which Is Perpetrating Crimes In Gaza Due To Arab Governments' Indifference
In a meeting with the Rohani government on July 14, 2014, Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei criticized the Arab governments' silence over the Israeli attack in Gaza: "The Gaza issue is truly disastrous, and the Zionist regime is exploiting the Islamic world's indifference in order to perpetrate this tragedy. The slaughter of the people in Gaza by the usurping Zionists should prompt the Islamic governments and nations to pull themselves together, to overcome internecine disputes, and to unite."[6]
On July 20, 2014, Khamenei's bureau tweeted Iran's support for any nation that would confront the Zionist regime:
On July 21, 2014, Khamenei's bureau posted a series of tweets attacking Israel and speaking against its existence, describing it as a "cancer tumor":
Source: Twitter.com/khamenei_ir
Iranian Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani, in his July 16, 2014 meeting with ambassadors from Muslim countries in Tehran, also called upon the Islamic countries to assist the Palestinians: "Most unfortunately, some countries in the region, by their silence, are helping the Zionist regime continue its brutal and inhumane behavior. The Palestinian people are very capable of defending themselves, and if the Islamic states provide them with [even] moderate assistance, the resistance will win and this people's fate will be in its [own] hands. The Islamic states must address the concerns that threaten the entire Islamic world and, first and foremost, the Palestinian issue."[7]
Javan: Iran Can Take Pride That The Fajr 5 Missiles And Ababil Drones Of Its Manufacture Now Serve Hamas
On July 17, 2014, the daily Javan stated: "The Islamic Republic of Iran is the only country in which a consensus on the Palestinian issue exists between the regime and its people. Together with popular support for the Palestinian fighters, the [Iranian] regime also provides important aid to the Palestinian fighters, including military weaponry… This measure by the Islamic Republic – arming the Palestinian groups – is carried out publicly, and not in secret, and has even been publicly emphasized by the leader [Khamenei] …
"Honestly, what reason does Iran have to conceal its comprehensive support for the defenseless Palestinian people? Undoubtedly, it [is a source of] great pride for Iran that the simplest Ababil drones, produced by the Islamic Republic [of Iran] and operated by the Hamas fighters, managed to turn the skies of the occupied territories [i.e., Israel] into the skies of [Hamas] and [even] hide from the [Israeli] regime's expensive radars and air defense systems. [It is a source of great pride for Iran] that Fajr 5 missiles, which are planned and manufactured by the military industries of the Islamic Republic, are in the hands of the Hamas fighters, [to be used] as tools of defense.
“It should be borne in mind that 18 months ago, during the previous war between Hamas and Israel, IRGC Commander Jafari announced proudly and clearly that the Islamic Republic had provided the oppressed people of Gaza with the technology to manufacture Fajr 5 missiles.
"The joke of the day is that the missiles of the Zionist regime's Iron Dome system, which cost $25,000 [apiece], are unsuccessful in shooting down the Fajr 5 missiles, which cost [only] a few hundred dollars, and that [consequently] fear and dread prevail in the occupied territories [Israel] more than at any other time.
“Finally, it should be stated loud and clear that for the Islamic Republic of Iran, the defense of the ideal of Palestine will never be sullied by political games. As Khamenei said, Iran will not hesitate to express support for the oppressed Palestinian people."[8]
Larijani Advisor: The Immigrants In The Occupied Territories Have One Option: To Return To The Countries From Which They Came
At a July 16 press conference, Hossein Al-Islam, secretary-general of the Iranian Association for Supporting the Palestinian Intifada and an advisor to Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani, said the following:
"This plan [the Egyptian cease-fire initiative] was more Israeli-Zionist than Egyptian, and even exceeded Israel's expectations. It sought to eliminate the capabilities of the Palestinian resistance and therefore was naturally rejected by the Palestinians. The resistance operated in a calculated and correct manner when it rejected the cease-fire because it did not provide them with any achievement.
"I condemn the total apathy of the Arab world towards these events. The Arab leaders have lost their dignity. This plan was a plot, and anyone with a minimal understanding of statesmanship comprehends this. I'm surprised that there are some people who expected the Palestinians to lay down their arms and [cease] resistance.
"The army of the Zionist regime does not enter into protracted wars. It is not built for this at all. [Israel] believes that due to the regional situation [i.e., the Iraqi and Syrian crises], it can keep the Islamic world busy [with its own problems] and carry out its plots to weaken and eliminate the resistance organizations… [but] with God's help, the Palestinian resistance will prevail and Jerusalem will be liberated. The Israeli army has been beaten [both] in theory and in practice… It did not manage to know what the resistance organizations have and where. It sought a quick conclusion to the conflict but is incapable of this…
"The Iron Dome system failed from an operational and theoretical standpoint, and no matter how much money the United States and Israel invest [in it], they will not be able to solve the problem [of missile launches]. From day to day, the fire capability of the resistance intensifies, as well as its diversity of sources. The resistance organization managed to sow confusion in Israel more than ever by the use of radar-avoiding missiles.
"Unfortunately, the Egyptian border is closed to Gaza, but despite this, the resistance organizations have attained this missile manufacturing capacity… The Palestinian issue should become the main issue in the Islamic world and should head its list of priorities, and every opportunity should be used to achieve this.
"[The Israelis] are incapable of entering a protracted war. They themselves know that a [ground] advance in Gaza is no easy task, and precisely for this reason they are hesitant [to launch] a military ground attack.
"Israel's security doctrine has shattered. It has surrounded itself with walls on four sides, but the resistance missiles attack it from the skies. To the immigrant residents of the occupied territories only one option remains: to return to the countries [from which they came]. This land belongs to the Palestinians…"[9]
Senior IRGC Official Bagher-Zadeh: Israel Doesn't Publicize Its Casualties, By Our Estimates 120 Were Killed
Mohammed Bagher-Zadeh, an IRGC commander, said that Israel does not publicize the total figures of those killed by the firing from Gaza. According to the IRGC estimate, he said, Israel has by now sustained 120 fatalities.
Fars News Agency Cartoons Condemn Arab Countries' Silence
Children, we thank you! Your silence and cooperation are unbelievable (Image: Fars, Ir., July 17, 2014)
Image: Fars.ir, July 15, 2014
Endnotes:
[1] See MEMRI Inquiry & Analysis no. 1101, "Recognizing The Limitations Of Its Regional Power, A Frustrated Iranian Regime Turns Its Wrath Towards Its Domestic Rivals," June 26, 2014.
[2] Yjc.ir, July 17, 2014; Palinfo.com, July 17, 2014.
[3] Jomhourieslami.com, July 20, 2014.
[4] Farsnews.com, July 18, 2014.
[5] Farsnews.com, July 14, 2014.
[6] Leader.ir, July 14, 2014.
[7] Farsnews.com, July 16, 2014.
[8] Javan (Iran), July 16, 2014.
[9] Rasanews.ir, July 16, 2014.
