TEHRAN- Iranians were not the only ones celebrating Tehran’s retaliatory missile strikes against the Israeli regime. The joyous mood quickly spread to other countries as well.

Videos of the hypersonic ballistic missiles being launched from Iranian territory and their dramatic entry into the skies of Israel spread like wildfire on social media. 

Most people in West Asia already felt a very strong sense of animosity towards the Israeli occupation regime. But the Israeli regime’s crimes over the past year have increased that hatred very swiftly, perhaps as quickly as the Iranian missiles reached their targets in Israel.

The quality of the Iranian operation coupled with the vast number of missiles landing on Israeli targets in such quick succession made it clear this was no ordinary retaliation.     

In neighboring Iraq, large public celebrations took place in many places including the capital Baghdad, the holy cities of Karbala and Najaf, Basrah, Wasit, Kut, Nasiriyah and Dhi Qar. The celebratory mood also spread to the provinces of Wasit, Babil, Kirkuk and Diwaniyah.

The lively atmosphere carried on to the late hours of the night. Footage of the gatherings show large crowds chanting, convoys of cars honking horns, waving flags and holding up posters of Iraqi martyrs as well as the martyr Secretary-General of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah. In Baghdad’s Palestine Street, people handed out sweets to motorists.

Also, in Lebanon, particularly southern Lebanon and the southern suburbs of Beirut, people were delighted over Iran’s missile strikes that shook Israel, including the capital Tel Aviv. 

For a nation still in mourning over the martyrdom of its resistance icon Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah and in the face of indiscriminate Israeli attacks, it was a rare opportunity to put matters aside and light up some fireworks.
Outside West Asia, there were similar scenes in regions around the world from villages in Africa to Pakistan and also Kashmir, India. 

Across the occupied West Bank, another region ravaged by war, crowds took to the streets to film the missiles flying over their heads amid chants of “God Is Great”. The Iranian response to the assassination of Hamas political bureau chief Esmail Haniyeh in Tehran was perhaps executed more powerfully than the Palestinians had imagined. 

Incredible footage went viral online showing Palestinians celebrating with the debris of an Iranian missile. Around a dozen men can be seen lifting it upwards and cheering before posing for photos. It looks like the rocket debris may be left as a monument unless Israeli bulldozers demolish it. 

Perhaps the most emotional scenes of happiness came from the totally blockaded Gaza Strip. After one year of brutal U.S.-backed Israeli genocide in the enclave, Palestinians cheered as they watched the missiles fired by Iran fly over their besieged skies.  

Amid the rubble of destroyed neighborhoods, footage posted online shows people using their mobile phones to capture the missiles before crowds erupted in celebrations.  

Other footage shows a large mobilization of Palestinians in Gaza walking, clapping and singing among the ruins of the war. In a rare night, amid a year of genocide, starvation, displacement, etc., this was an opportunity for Gazans to smile in the world’s largest open-air prison.