SULAIMANI (ESTA) — Iran’s top authority, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, stated on Tuesday that Tehran was not involved in the recent attack on Israel by the militant Hamas group.
However, Khamenei praised what he called Israel’s “irreparable” military and intelligence defeat. He stated that the attack had destroyed critical structures in Israel that would not be easily repaired and blamed the “Zionist regime’s” actions for the disaster.
“We kiss the hands of those who planned the attack on the Zionist regime,” said Khamenei, who was wearing a Palestinian scarf, in his first televised speech since the attack.
“This destructive earthquake (Hamas’ attack) has destroyed some critical structures (in Israel) which will not be repaired easily … The Zionist regime’s own actions are to blame for this disaster,” said Khamenei.
Israel has long accused Iran of supplying arms to Hamas, but Tehran denies this and says it only provides moral and financial support to the group. Supporting the Palestinian cause has been a fundamental aspect of Iran’s foreign policy since the 1979 revolution.
Israel has re-established control over the Gaza border and is planting mines where militants had toppled the barrier during their attack. Khamenei warned that an attack on Gaza would unleash a much heavier torrent of anger and result in even greater disaster.
