Tehran – To commemorate Jerusalem Day, an annual demonstration of sympathy for the Palestinians, tens of thousands of Iranians marched through the capital city of Tehran on Friday.
President Ebrahim Raisi and other senior Iranian leaders were present during the gathering.
The protests commemorating what is also known as Al-Quds Day have generally been conducted on the final Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan since Iran’s revolution in 1979.
Jerusalem, the city at the centre of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, is known in Arabic as Al-Quds.
In the Middle East War of 1967, Israel took East Jerusalem and made it a part of its capital. The Palestinians want Jerusalem’s eastern sector to serve as their future capital.
The Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third holiest site in Islam, is located in Jerusalem.
According to Raisi, Friday’s demonstrations demonstrate that the liberation of Al-Quds is “very close, closer than expected,” according to the official IRNA news agency.
Additionally, they demonstrate to Palestinian militant groups battling Israel that “they are not alone,” according to Raisi.
Mohammed Qalibaf, speaker of the Iranian parliament, claimed that Palestinian forces were impeding Israeli ambitions and that Israel was the “root” of the problems in the region.
On Friday, protesters in Tehran marched in 10 different ways to the campus of Tehran University, where the ritual came to a close in time for Friday noon prayers.
Videos of such protests in other Iranian cities and towns were broadcast on official television.
Many protesters hoisted Palestinian flags as well as the Hezbollah banner of Lebanon.
Benjamin Netanyahu effigies were set on fire by protesters in certain locations.
Retired teacher Reza Masoumi, 63, said he took part in the demonstrations to tell Israel that “they cannot control Palestinians. Iran and its people support Palestine.
A 20-year-old student named Fatemeh Yasrebi declared her support for the Palestinians “until Israel withdraws from (the) occupied lands of Palestinians. It is difficult for Muslim countries and Israel to live in peace.
Israeli police storming Palestinian worshippers inside the Al-Aqsa Mosque was seen in recent days on state TV.
