The leader of Quds Force made the commitment in response to rumours that Tehran was attempting to stay out of the Gaza conflict directly.
Claiming that Hamas is headed for a “impressive victory” in Gaza, the commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force has vowed to do “whatever it takes” to support the Palestinian militant group in its conflict with Israel.
Leader of the Quds Force Esmail Qaani said that Tehran and its allies “will not allow this brutal enemy and those standing behind him to conquer Gaza and its heroic people” in a letter to the commander of Hamas’ military branch, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades.
Hamas had “proved to everyone that the resistance in Gaza is capable of initiative and innovation, while maintaining its organisation and field capabilities,” Qaani declared, adding, “We will do whatever it takes in this historic battle.”
The letter was released on Thursday by the government-sponsored Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA). It was published one day after Reuters revealed that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, had told Hamas that his nation would not be directly involved in the Gaza conflict. According to reports, Khamenei reiterated Iran’s long-standing “political and moral support” for Hamas but disregarded the possibility of armed action.
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Osama Hamdan, a senior Hamas official, refuted the Reuters report earlier on Thursday, telling IRNA that the news organisation had “published worthless lies” in place of any information. He continued by saying that these claims are meant to damage the reputation of Hamas and its friends in the “axis of resistance,” a coalition of paramilitary organisations supported by Iran that operates in Gaza, Syria, Iraq, and Lebanon.
Regarding the Reuters article, Iranian authorities have not yet responded.
Assuring that “Your brothers in the resistance axis stand united with you,” Qaani continued by congratulating the Palestinian armed side on their “impressive victory and qualitative achievement that is unprecedented in the history of the conflict.”
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Tehran’s external operations branch, known as the Quds Force, is in charge of conducting military and intelligence activities outside of Iran. Following the death of his predecessor, Qasem Soleimani, in a US drone strike close to Baghdad in 2020, Qaani assumed command of the unit.
