A spokesman for the Sunni jihadist terror organization Hamas confirmed to the BBC on Saturday its unprecedented, ongoing attack on the state of Israel received support from neighboring Iran, the world’s most prolific state sponsor of terrorism.
“Ghazi Hamad, a Hamas spokesman, meanwhile told the BBC that the group had direct backing for the attack from Iran,” the British broadcaster reported.
The confirmation follows years of substantial evidence of a direct relationship between Iran and Hamas, as well as vocal support from the Iranian regime for terrorist organizations seeking the destruction of the Israeli state. Israeli military experts commenting on Saturday told local outlets that the drones and other weaponry being used in the assault, which Hamas has branded the “al-Aqsa Deluge,” appeared to be at least “inspired” by Iranian technology if not directly donated or sold by Iran.
The Iranian government has enthusiastically applauded the massacres on Saturday and threw a street party in Tehran to celebrate.
Hamas terrorists flooded Israel, apparently from the direction of Gaza, on Saturday in an unprecedented operation. According to the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), Hamas fired over 3,000 rockets into the country in the first 24 hours of the attack.
RELATED — MSNBC: Israel Caused Attacks on It and Made People Vote for Hamas
Hamas claimed the number of rockets fired had surpassed 7,000 by Saturday night.
Terrorists on the ground also infiltrated Israeli communities, taking an unknown number of hostages. Between the street attacks and rocket firings, the death toll at press time is believed to total over 300 people and authorities have documented another 1,600 wounded.
The terrorists have used social media to flood the world with graphic images of violence, including the abuse of Israeli women and children. Multiple videos appear to show Hamas terrorists desecrating the corpses of Israeli women.
The Palestinian terror attack happened on the Jewish holiday of Shemini Atzeret, the final day of the annual High Holy Day cycle.
Palestinians wave their national flag and celebrate by a destroyed Israeli tank at the Gaza Strip fence east of Khan Younis southern Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Yousef Masoud)
Iran has a longstanding relationship with Hamas, offering the jihadists access to its arsenal of weapons and supporting the destruction of Israel on the world stage.
“All the missiles you might see in Gaza and Lebanon were created with Iran’s support,” IRGC Aerospace Force commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh boasted in 2021.
The “supreme leader” of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, celebrated the mass killings in Israel on Saturday through his account on Twitter. Twitter content screeners identified Khamenei’s statement as a violation of its terms of use but did not delete it on the grounds that it is “in the public’s interest for the Post to remain accessible.”
“God willing, the cancer of the usurper Zionist regime will be eradicated,” Khamenei wrote.
A senior adviser to Khamenei, Yahya Rahim Safavi, declared on Saturday that his country fully supported “the proud operation” against Israel.
We support this operation, and we are sure that the resistance front also supports this issue,” he asserted.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry offered “congratulations” to Hamas for its killing, according to Iran’s state-run PressTV propaganda network.
“What happened today is in line with the continuation of the victories of the resistance in the face of the Zionists in various fields, including in Syria, Lebanon and the occupied territories,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani said on Saturday.
In Tehran, the regime threw a street party. During the day, locals shared free lemonade; at night, the government organized a fireworks display in celebration of the hundreds killed.
“The gathering in Tehran in front of Palestine Embassy was attended by people from different walks of life as well as students from various universities, who rejoiced over the victory while waving Palestinian and resistance groups’ flags,” PressTV reported. “The participants declared their support for the Palestinian fighters by chanting ‘Death to America,’ ‘Death to Israel,’ and other pro-Palestinian slogans.”
Under American President Joe Biden, the White House has supported easing sanctions and negotiating with both Iran and some of its top geopolitical allies. Among the first-ever acts of the Biden administration in February 2021 was the removal of the Yemeni Houthi terrorist organization from the State Department’s list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations – not on the grounds that the group had turned to peace, but in an attempt to allow money to flow into Yemen more easily, presumably for humanitarian reasons.
People gather in support of the recent attacks on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas at Fatih Mosque on October 07, 2023 in Istanbul, Turkey. (Burak Kara/Getty Images)
The Houthis launched a cycle of attacks against Saudi Arabia and intensified violence within Yemen following the move.
More recently, the Biden administration approved the transfer of $6 billion in frozen Iranian funds out of South Korea, for the Iranian regime’s use. Biden reportedly traded the $6 billion for the release of five Americans held hostage in Iranian prisons.
“This is not a ransom,” White House National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby insisted in August, before reports citing Biden administration officials confirmed the agreement on September 11.