Iran denies helping Hamas plan attack on Israel
(Baonghean.vn) - Tehran asserted that the Palestinian gunmen acted completely independently.
According to RT, Tehran has officially denied accusations that it helped Palestinian militants plan a surprise attack on Israel on October 7.
In a statement to the media, the Iranian mission to the United Nations said: “The decisions taken by the Palestinian resistance are strongly autonomous and consistent with the legitimate interests of the Palestinian people. We are not involved in the Palestinian response because it is solely the Palestinians themselves.”
Earlier, on October 8, the Wall Street Journal cited several sources, including unnamed members of the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah, saying that officers from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had helped plan the attack on Israel since August. Accordingly, this force also "green-lighted" the above campaign at a meeting in Beirut, Lebanon last Monday.
Ghazi Hamad, a Hamas spokesman, told the BBC that the militants had “direct support” from Iran. However, Ali Baraka, another Hamas official, insisted in an interview with NBC News that Tehran had not been informed in advance of “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.””“It was a surprise to everyone, including Iran,” he asserted.
Although US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the White House had not found evidence of Tehran's involvement, some Israeli and US officials have accused the Islamic Republic of colluding with Hamas.
According to RT, Palestinian gunmen and allied groups launched a surprise attack on Israel from Gaza, firing rockets and infiltrating Israeli settlements. The Israeli government responded by declaring war on Hamas and launching airstrikes on Gaza.
Iran has backed the attack and called on other Muslim countries to support the Palestinians against Israel.
Since October 7, more than 700 Israelis and at least 436 Palestinians have been killed.