Iran Displays Missiles Used To Hit IS At Annual Anti-Israeli Rally

Iran displayed ballistic missiles that it used to recently destroy positions of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group in Syria, during its annual anti-Israel rallies staged in Iran’s capital city, Tehran, meant to show support and solidarity with Palestinians.

Rallies, named International Quds Day, after the Arabic name for Jerusalem, are staged all across Iran and several other Muslim-populated cities around the world, on the last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan. During rallies demonstrators often chant slogans against Israel and its Western allies, including the United States, calling for an end to the “Israeli occupation of Palestine.” Rallying in solidarity against Israel and for the liberation of Jerusalem was prescribed as a religious duty on this day by Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of Iran’s Islamic Republic, in 1979.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who took part in the rally held in Tehran, along with senior Iranian officials on Friday, said that the high turnout of demonstrators this year serves as a reaction to what Iranians see as the United States trying to pile on pressure on Iran by suggesting it will tighten unilateral sanctions.

Zolfagar ground-to-ground missiles, which have a range of 700 kilometers, and Qadr missiles, which have a 2,000 kilometer range, were on full display on trucks during a military-styled parade through the streets of Tehran. Zolfagar missiles were reportedly used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps to destroy IS targets in Dayr al-Zawr in Syria, on June 18. According to Iranian media, a senior IS commander and at least 360 other terrorists were killed in the missile attacks.

The operation, which saw Iran launch six of its medium-range ground-to-ground ballistic missiles, was described as retaliation for the June 7 twin terrorist attacks in Tehran, which left 17 people dead and over 40 wounded. IS had claimed responsibility for both the attack on Iran’s parliament and a mausoleum dedicated to Khomeini.

“The commemoration of Quds Day does not merely mean defending an oppressed nation who have been driven out of their motherland and homes, but defending Palestine today is defending a reality much greater than the issue of Palestine,” Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday, according to his official website.

Earlier this month Palestinians marked the 50th anniversary of the 1967 Six-Day War with Israel, which resulted in Israel occupying the West Bank, East Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip and part of Syria’s Golan Heights.

In November 2016, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 242, under which Israel is required to withdraw from all territories seized in the 1967 war.