Iran's Supreme Leader Accuses Israel of Gaza 'Genocide'
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Tuesday accused Israel of committing "genocide" in Gaza and called on the Islamic world to arm Palestinians fighting "the Zionist regime".
In a speech marking the Muslim festival of Eid al-Fitr, Khamenei said Israel was acting like a "rabid dog" and "a wild wolf" in acts that are causing a human catastrophe and which must be resisted.
"A people surrounded in a small place with closed borders, unsure of having water and electricity, this population faces an armed enemy," he said of three weeks of fighting in the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 1,100 Palestinians and 53 Israelis.
"The people resist unabated. This is a lesson for all."
Khamenei dismissed talk of a ceasefire in Gaza, saying it was a ploy by the United States and European states to save Israel and said Hamas should be re-armed, rather than disarmed as otherwise they will be "unable to defend themselves".
"The US president issued a fatwa that the resistance is disarmed so that they cannot respond to all those crimes (committed by Israel)," the supreme leader said, referring to a call by Barack Obama for the "disarmament of terrorist groups and the demilitarization of Gaza".
"We say the opposite. The world and especially the Islamic world should arm ... the Palestinian people," Khamenei said.
His comments follow rallies held across Iran on Friday in a show of support for Palestinians and to protest against Israeli military action in Gaza.
Iran does not recognize Israel's existence and supports Palestinian Islamist groups that fight it.
On Thursday, the speaker of Iran's parliament, Ali Larijani, told state television's Arabic service that Tehran had provided Hamas with the technology it has used to rain down rockets on Israel.
During the last major conflict in and around Gaza in November 2012, Larijani said Iran was proud to have provided "both financial and military support" to Hamas.
Israel accused Iran of supplying Gaza militants with its Fajr-5 missile, which has a range of 75 kilometers (45 miles), during that conflict.
29 July 2014, 09:26
41
Let them fight like men in a punch up in a boxing ring. Yes that is violent too but its better than guns and rockets.
God help the human race. Netanyahu is becoming like Adolf Hitler. But there have been a lot of war crimes in the history of civilization starting with the Roman Empire.
29 July 2014, 10:36
14
Israel can destroy you and your crazy leaders if it chooses to, you hypocrite.
29 July 2014, 11:55
00
Khamenei:
Netanyahu 1000 killed genocide
Bashar 200 000 killed kindness and love
29 July 2014, 16:40
10
Got a point hamas lays down its arms and israle takes over than lebanon is next....its enough that this ex cia baghdadi guy in Iraq will be on his way towards lebanon....pple we need to come together and stop bashing each other look at the mid east...almost every arab state is at war...open your eyes cuz it doesnt make any sense at all we never had this much violance meaning some1 is trying to divide us so we can easily be conquered....i know some of you guys are gonna bash me right now for wat im saying but its the truth since when did we see so much ciolance in the world meaning world war 3 is about to happen and sadly lebanon has nothing to defend itself with
29 July 2014, 22:17
00
If it is genocide in Gaza, what does the Ayadevil call the 150,000 civilian deaths in Syria (committed Iran and their allies)?
