TEHRAN – Millions of Iranians attended rallies held across the country on Friday to mark Quds Day in show of solidarity with the Palestinian people.

The marchers, among them children, shouted slogans against the Zionist regime of Israel whose occupation of Palestinian lands and its tyranny against the Palestinians are the source of many problems, including extremism and violence, in the Middle East and the larger world.

The demonstrators also carried placards on which a statement by the Supreme Leader was written who had said: “The Zionist regime of Israel will not exist in the next 25 years”.

The people also carried images of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon whose mouth was filled with money under which it was written that “unfortunately” Ban was bribed to remove the “name of Saudi Arabia from the list of child killers.

Senior Iranian officials also participated in the rallies.  President Hassan Rouhani said the division in the Islamic world and terrorist acts in the Middle East have deflected the attention of Muslims from the “cause of liberating Palestine”.

He called for boosting unity among Muslims to counter the terrorists and materialize the Palestine cause.

“It has been 70 years that the Muslim Palestinian nation are away from their homeland, and the occupants, who are not committed to international law and human principles, have occupied there,” he lamented.

Rouhani said, “One of the regional Muslims’ ideals is security in the region and one way to establish security in the region is letting the Muslims live in their own land.”

Mohammad Javad Zarif, the foreign minister, said Quds Day is the “greatest inheritance” of Imam Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic.

He also said that Muslims do not accept “wrong policies” and “distance from realities and threats against the world of Islam”.

He added that Muslims consider the Zionist regime of Israel the most “serious threat” to the Islamic world and international peace and security.

Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Shamkhani said the hegemony seeks to marginalize the Palestine issue.

Shamkhani said the participation at the Quds rally shows that the Iranians support the oppressed Palestinians and prioritize the Palestine issue.

The top security official also noted that the current situation in the Islamic world shows the logic behind naming the last Friday of Ramadan the international Quds Day.

Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, chairman of the Expediency Council, praised the people’s attendance at the Quds Day rally.

He also said the events in the Middle East region show that more “vigilance” is needed.

First Vice-President Es’haq Jahangiri said that the Iranian people express support for the Palestinians annually on the Quds Day rallies.

While the Iranians support the oppressed people in the world in peaceful ways the terrorist groups shed blood in the region, he said.

Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said that the people’s attendance at rally shows their “sensitivity” towards the destiny of Muslims.

The people voiced support for the Palestinians and proved that they are united, he added.

“Awakening of the Islamic community can be a real support for the Palestinian nation,” Larijani noted.

According to the Press TV, a statement was issued at the end of the rally calling for resistance against the Zionist regime of Israel and support for Palestinian resistance, and maintaining unity in the Islamic world.

Quds Day is an annual event held on the last Friday of Ramadan to express support for the Palestinians and oppose Zionism as well as Israel’s control of Jerusalem.

NA/PA