Iran: Resistance battle against Israel will alter ‘balance of power in region’

The large-scale operation launched by the Palestinian resistance movements against Israel has propelled the Palestinian issue to the forefront of global concerns and will change “the balance of power in the region,” the spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry says.

Nasser Kan’ani made the remarks in an address to a meeting in Tehran on Sunday on the ongoing situation in the occupied territories after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas launched a surprise attack, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, against Israel on October 7.

“Al-Aqsa Storm showed Palestine is still the top issue in the world and has enough energy and capacity that can draw the world’s [attention] to itself and change the balance of power in the region and beyond,” Kan’ani said.

The Iranian official said the military operation and its developments proved Iran’s “correct” understanding of the significance of the Palestinian issue.

Over the past 44 years, he noted, Iran has been the main supporter of the Palestinian issue and has never overlooked it in its regional and international relations.

The spokesman said even in complicated issues with the global hegemonic system, Iran has never used the absolute interests of the Palestinian people as a pretext to reach a reconciliation with other regional and extra-regional actors.

Kan’ani said the resistance groups’ anti-Israel operation brought the Palestinian issue back to the top subjects in the world.

The Palestinian people proved that they would never wait for world powers’ favor and attention in defending their rights, Kan’ani said.

“The hegemonic powers showed that they do not take the side of humanity or human rights when it comes to morality and human issues. They only take the side of their illegitimate interests and their oppressive and usurping partners, especially the Zionist regime,” the Iranian spokesperson stated.

Pointing to Iran’s high support for the oppressed Palestinian people during Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip, he said an emergency summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in the Saudi capital Riyadh and a meeting of Muslim and Arab leaders proved the effectiveness of Tehran’s efforts to unite the political power of Muslim and Arab states in the region.

In their virtual meeting, the BRICS group of emerging economies also attached great significance to the Palestinian issue, Kan’ani said.