Iran-Palestine relations
Encyclopedia
The Islamic Republic of Iran officially endorses the creation of a Palestinian state, regarding Israel
as Palestine
under occupation by the "Zionist regime". Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, rejects a Two state solution and stated that Palestine is inseparable, while Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for a free referendum for the entire Palestinian population, including Arab citizens of Israel
, to determine the type of government in the future Palestinian state, while reiterating that establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel would "never mean an endorsement of the Israeli occupation".
Prior to the 1979 Iranian revolution
, the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) held close ties with Iranian opposition groups. Following the revolution, Iran ended its alliance with Israel and started supporting the Palestinians, symbolized by turning over the Israeli embassy in Tehran to the Palestine Liberation Organization
.
, the Shah was much more interested in maintaining good relations with Israel and the United States, than in the Palestinians or in the Arab-Israeli peace process.
The Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) held close ties with the Iranian opposition, training Iranian dissidents trained at PLO camps in Lebanon.
led a Palestinian delegation to Iran. The Iranian Prime Minister Mehdi Bazargan
hosted an official welcome ceremony for Arafat, where the keys to the former Israeli embassy were symbolically handed over to the PLO.
Ayatollah Khomeini, however, criticized the PLO for its nationalist, pan-Arab agenda, asking Arafat to model the PLO on the principles of the Islamic revolution, a request which was declined by Arafat.
The Iran-PLO relations deteriorated further when Arafat supported Iraq during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war
. Iran condemned Arafat in 1988, after he recognized Israel, renounced terrorism, and called for peace talks with Israel. In 1989, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
named Arafat a “traitor and an idiot”. The PLO maintained diplomatic relations with Tehran, but Iran did not aid the PLO again until 2000.
, in September 2000 after the collapse of Middle East peace talks at Camp David, Arafat released imprisoned Hamas
and Islamic Jihad
militants, a decision that restored the relations between Iran and the Palestinian National Authority. The renewed support became evident when Israeli commandos captured the Karine A in 2002, a ship carrying 50 tons of advanced weaponry from Iran to Gaza.
is a militant and political organization currently in power in the Gaza Strip. Hamas does not recognize the State of Israel, and by its Covenant, was committed to the destruction of Israel by Jihad, However it now states that it will accept a ceasefire with Israel if Israel ends its blockade. Iran supplies political support and weapons to Hamas. According to Mahmoud Abbas
, President of the Palestinian National Authority
, "Hamas is funded by Iran. It claims it is financed by donations, but the donations are nothing like what it receives from Iran.
Aid to Hamas increased after Arafat’s death in 2004 and Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza in 2005. Following the Hamas victory in the 2006 Palestinian elections, foreign aid dried up, leading Tehran to send significant financial aid to support the nearly bankrupt, Hamas led Palestinian National Authority.
In September 2010, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that the peace talks in Washington would not achieve their goals, because Hamas is the true representative of the Palestinian people, among other reasons. PA officials responded to these Iranian statements with "unprecedented ferocity". Omar Al-Ghoul replied that the time had come to put an end to Iran's "regime of death and destruction." Fatah spokesman Osama Al-Qawasmi said that Iran is striving to divide Palestine, to spark civil wars and sectarian and ethnic strife in numerous Arab regions, and therefore it cannot benefit the Palestinian people.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
as Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
under occupation by the "Zionist regime". Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, rejects a Two state solution and stated that Palestine is inseparable, while Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for a free referendum for the entire Palestinian population, including Arab citizens of Israel
Arab citizens of Israel
Arab citizens of Israel refers to citizens of Israel who are not Jewish, and whose cultural and linguistic heritage or ethnic identity is Arab....
, to determine the type of government in the future Palestinian state, while reiterating that establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel would "never mean an endorsement of the Israeli occupation".
Prior to the 1979 Iranian revolution
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
, the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) held close ties with Iranian opposition groups. Following the revolution, Iran ended its alliance with Israel and started supporting the Palestinians, symbolized by turning over the Israeli embassy in Tehran to the Palestine Liberation Organization
Palestine Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization which was created in 1964. It is recognized as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" by the United Nations and over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations, and has enjoyed...
.
Before the Iranian revolution
Before the Iranian revolution, there was no Palestinian embassy in Iran. According to the Iranian academic and political analyst Hooshang AmirahmadiHooshang Amirahmadi
Hooshang Amirahmadi is an Iranian academic and political analyst.Amirahmadi is the founder and president of American Iranian Council, holds a Ph.D. in planning and international development from Cornell University and is a professor of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy,...
, the Shah was much more interested in maintaining good relations with Israel and the United States, than in the Palestinians or in the Arab-Israeli peace process.
The Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) held close ties with the Iranian opposition, training Iranian dissidents trained at PLO camps in Lebanon.
After the 1979 Iranian revolution
The PLO backed the 1979 revolution, and several days after the revolution, PLO chief Yasser ArafatYasser Arafat
Mohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini , popularly known as Yasser Arafat or by his kunya Abu Ammar , was a Palestinian leader and a Laureate of the Nobel Prize. He was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization , President of the Palestinian National Authority...
led a Palestinian delegation to Iran. The Iranian Prime Minister Mehdi Bazargan
Mehdi Bazargan
Mehdi Bazargan was a prominent Iranian scholar, academic, long-time pro-democracy activist and head of Iran's interim government, making him Iran's first prime minister after the Iranian Revolution of 1979. He was the head of the first engineering department of Tehran University...
hosted an official welcome ceremony for Arafat, where the keys to the former Israeli embassy were symbolically handed over to the PLO.
Ayatollah Khomeini, however, criticized the PLO for its nationalist, pan-Arab agenda, asking Arafat to model the PLO on the principles of the Islamic revolution, a request which was declined by Arafat.
The Iran-PLO relations deteriorated further when Arafat supported Iraq during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq war
Iran-Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between the armed forces of Iraq and Iran, lasting from September 1980 to August 1988, making it the longest conventional war of the twentieth century...
. Iran condemned Arafat in 1988, after he recognized Israel, renounced terrorism, and called for peace talks with Israel. In 1989, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
Ali Khamenei
Ayatollah Seyed Ali Hoseyni Khāmene’i is the Supreme Leader of Iran and the figurative head of the Muslim conservative establishment in Iran and Twelver Shi'a marja...
named Arafat a “traitor and an idiot”. The PLO maintained diplomatic relations with Tehran, but Iran did not aid the PLO again until 2000.
Relations during the Intifada
After the eruption of the second Palestinian intifadaPalestinian Intifada
The Palestinian Intifada may refer to:*The First Intifada began in 1987. Violence declined in 1991 and came to an end with the signing of the Oslo accords and the creation of the Palestinian National Authority...
, in September 2000 after the collapse of Middle East peace talks at Camp David, Arafat released imprisoned Hamas
Hamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
and Islamic Jihad
Islamic Jihad
Islamic Jihad may refer to:* Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine* Islamic Jihad Organization, active mostly in Lebanon* Islamic Jihad of Yemen* Turkish Islamic Jihad* Egyptian Islamic JihadSee also:* Islamic jihad, theological concept of jihad...
militants, a decision that restored the relations between Iran and the Palestinian National Authority. The renewed support became evident when Israeli commandos captured the Karine A in 2002, a ship carrying 50 tons of advanced weaponry from Iran to Gaza.
Support for Hamas
HamasHamas
Hamas is the Palestinian Sunni Islamic or Islamist political party that governs the Gaza Strip. Hamas also has a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades...
is a militant and political organization currently in power in the Gaza Strip. Hamas does not recognize the State of Israel, and by its Covenant, was committed to the destruction of Israel by Jihad, However it now states that it will accept a ceasefire with Israel if Israel ends its blockade. Iran supplies political support and weapons to Hamas. According to Mahmoud Abbas
Mahmoud Abbas
Mahmoud Abbas , also known by the kunya Abu Mazen , has been the Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organisation since 11 November 2004 and became President of the Palestinian National Authority on 15 January 2005 on the Fatah ticket.Elected to serve until 9 January 2009, he unilaterally...
, President of the Palestinian National Authority
President of the Palestinian National Authority
The President of the Palestinian National Authority is the highest-ranking political position in the Palestinian National Authority ....
, "Hamas is funded by Iran. It claims it is financed by donations, but the donations are nothing like what it receives from Iran.
Aid to Hamas increased after Arafat’s death in 2004 and Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza in 2005. Following the Hamas victory in the 2006 Palestinian elections, foreign aid dried up, leading Tehran to send significant financial aid to support the nearly bankrupt, Hamas led Palestinian National Authority.
Statements by Palestinian Authority
Palestinian Authority spokesman Nabil Abu Rudaineh has said of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that "The one who does not represent the Iranian people, who falsified election results, who oppressed the Iranian people and stole authority has no right to speak about Palestine, its president or its representatives".In September 2010, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that the peace talks in Washington would not achieve their goals, because Hamas is the true representative of the Palestinian people, among other reasons. PA officials responded to these Iranian statements with "unprecedented ferocity". Omar Al-Ghoul replied that the time had come to put an end to Iran's "regime of death and destruction." Fatah spokesman Osama Al-Qawasmi said that Iran is striving to divide Palestine, to spark civil wars and sectarian and ethnic strife in numerous Arab regions, and therefore it cannot benefit the Palestinian people.