Massive nationwide rallies in Iran to mark International Quds Day

Tens of thousands of Iranians have taken to the streets in nationwide rallies to mark International Quds Day, an annual event to express solidarity with the people of Palestine.

This year's rallies came after a two-year hiatus and saw the participation of top Iranian government and military officials, including President Ebrahim Raisi, parliament speaker Mohammad Baqar Ghalibaf, Chief of Staff of Iran's Armed Forces Mohammad Bagheri, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) chief Hossein Salami.

In the capital Tehran, people marched on different streets, carrying posters and banners with pro-Palestine messages and chanting anti-Israel slogans, and converged around noon at Tehran University where top officials, including Salami, addressed the gathering.

In his remarks, Maj. Gen. Salami said the issue of Palestine is becoming "more prominent" in the global political arena, and reaching a point where attacks on Palestinians "doesn't come without consequences" for Israel.

He said Palestinians are armed today and "ready for fight", unlike before when they would be massacred.

He further said that "compromise with the oppressor" was "not a safe and free way to live."

READ MORE: Does Iran’s Quds Day help the Palestinian cause?

'Fight against global arrogance and hegemony'

In Friday's rally in Tehran, two advanced homegrown missiles were put on display, including Emad with a range of 1,700 kilometres and Kheibarshekan with a range of 1,450 km.

On Thursday, addressing a gathering of foreign diplomats in Iran, Raisi said the normalisation of relations with Israel was likely to "provoke anger of nearly 2 billion Muslims" of the world.

He said the "usurping" Israel was a "serious threat to the Muslim ummah," adding that support for the Palestinian nation serves as a "unifying" factor among people worldwide.

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, in a Thursday phone call with Hissein Brahim Taha, the secretary-general of the Organization of Islamic Conference, welcomed the idea of holding a conference at the level of foreign ministers to discuss the latest developments in Palestine.

In a separate call with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Amirabdollahian asked Jeyhun Bayramov to use the country's position as the rotating president of the Non-Aligned Movement to "stop the bloodshed in Palestine and take action against Israeli atrocities."

READ MORE: Iran 'will support' any nation or group that fights Israel – Khamenei