Al-Quds Day 2014 in Damascus, Syria

[Damascus, 25 July 2014] – A massive rally took place Friday in Damascus starting from the entrance of al-Hamidiyeh market towards the Umayyad Mosque marking the International al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day, an annual event held on the last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan.

The event was first initiated by the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979 to express solidarity with the Palestinian people in the face of the Zionist Israeli entity and its control of Jerusalem.

Popular figures and representatives of Palestinian and Syrian forces, factions and commissions took part in the rally, expressing support with the besieged people of the Gaza Strip who have been under barbaric Israel aggression for 19 consecutive days that has left over 815 Palestinians dead and more than 5220 wounded.

Member of the Regional Leadership of al-Baath Party, Head of Media and Culture Office, Khalaf al-Muftah said that the Palestinian people in Gaza are repelling bravely the Zionist aggression waged against them in cooperation and support from the enemies of the Arab nation and their tools in the region as the Gulf countries and Turkey.

“The aggression on Gaza was not the first and will not be the last because it reflects the criminal mentality of the Zionist entity,” al-Muftah said.

He considered the aggression on Gaza a genocide against the Palestinian people, condemning the West’s double standards regarding what is happening in the region.

For his part, Assistant Secretary General of Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command Talal Naji said that al-Quds Day  is for the Arab and Islamic people around the world, hailing the sacrifices of the Palestinian people in Gaza in confronting Zionist enemy which seeks to liquidate the Palestinian cause.

He also called on all free people around the world to support the Palestinian people against the brutal Israeli aggression  amid the silence of the countries and organizations that claim  protection of human rights.

The participants said that Syria will support resistance until it achieves freedom.

Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah stressed that Hezbollah was and will stay beside the resistance in Palestine, voicing readiness to offer support to this resistance on all levels.Sayyed Nasrallah during Al-Quds day ceremony

During a mass ceremony for the occasion of Al-Quds International Day, Sayyed Nasrallah assured that the resistance in Gaza has triumphed thanks to the bravery of the resistance fighters in the battlefield and to the steadfastness of the people in the besieged strip.

The target of the war in Gaza is not Hamas, but the resistance, its weapon and its will, Hezbollah S.G. said during the ceremony which he personally took part in, defying both Takfiri and Israeli threats.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese resistance leader said that the Israeli enemy is now in the stage of failure, warning that the continuation of the war on Gaza will take them to the stage of suicide.

Sayyed Nasrallah also warned that the nation is witnessing the most dangerous stage since Palestine’s occupation, saying: “Previously we were talking about destroying states and regimes, but today they are working to destroy the people.”

The Occasion of Al-Quds Day

Talking about the occasion, Sayyed Nssrallah said that despite threats which prompted Hezbollah to cancel all its activities in the holy month of Ramadan, “Gaza events and the specialty of Al-Quds day require us to meet today despite the security situation.”Crowds during Al-Quds Day in Sayyed Shuhadaa Complex

His eminence said that the occasion of al-Quds day this year coincide with the eighth anniversary of July war.

“In July war anniversary we salute the resistance in Lebanon, its people, its martyrs and its fighters,” Sayyed Nasrallah addressed crowds in Sayyed Shuhadaa Complex in Beirut’s southern suburb, (Dahiyeh).

Hezbollah S.G. then talked about the importance of Imam Khomeini’s announcement to name the last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan as Al-Quds International Day.

He said that “as days pass, we realize the importance of Imam Khomeni’s announcement to name the last Friday of Ramadan holy month as the Al-Quds International Day.”

“Zionists’ only concern since (Imam Khomeini’s announcement) was to wipe out the Palestinian cause,” Sayyed Nasrallah said, adding that the Israeli enemy “knew they could not quash the Palestinian people in a year or within a generation. For, a long-term scheme was plotted in a bid to reach this goal.”

Conspiracies

“Zionists tried to create a central cause and enemies for each Arab country, in a bid for this nation to forget Palestine,” his eminence said, noting that “Zionists worked to isolate the Palestinian people and to involve them in several conflicts in order to reach a stage in which people no more worry about Palestine.”

“When a Palestinian blew himself up (in Syria and Iraq), it’s not in vain but it is in a bid to create enmity with Palestinians,” Sayyed Nasrallah elaborated.

However, “Despite these conspiracies, Palestinian cause is still imposing itself, and what’s coming on in Gaza is a proof.”Sayyed Nasrallah during Al-Quds day ceremony

At the meantime, Sayyed Nasrallah noted that “the (main) reasons of the Palestinian cause’s persistence are the triumph of the Islamic revolution in Iran and the steadfastness of Syria in face of the conspiracies.”

His eminence warned that the stage “we are passing through today is the most dangerous one since Palestine’s occupation. Previously we were talking about destroying states and regimes, but today they are working to destroy the people.”

Sayyed Nasrallah stressed that Syria was and will still be the “incubator of the resistance and the impregnable wall in face of the Zionist scheme.”

He denounced the actions of Takfiri groups in Iraq and Syria, warning against the destruction of the prophets’ shrines and worship places.

“In this context, I warn that the destruction of prophets’ shrines and worship places may pave the way to destroy the holy Al-Aqsa Mosque by the Zionists,” his eminence said, noting that “our nation in its worse conditions, but the first victim is Palestine.”

“We Are Sure of Gaza Victory”

Concerning the brutal Israeli aggression on Gaza, Sayyd Nasrallah praised the Palestinian people’s steadfastness, as well as the bravery of the resistance fighters, voicing confidence that the resistance in Gaza will triumph.

His eminence saluted Gaza’s martyrs, its steadfast people and its resistance, pointing out that “the aim of Gaza war today and in 2008 and from July war is to conquer the resistance and to take off the power points of it.”Sayyed Nasrallah during Al-Quds day ceremony

Sayyed Nasrallah recalled July war in 2006 saying: “we completely understand what coming on in Gaza today because we had passed through the same circumstances in 2006. Starting from the abducting pretext (of the war), to the goals of the war, the ground assault, the international community.”

“The target of Gaza war today is the resistance, its weapon, its people and its will,” Hezbollah leader said, stressing that Gaza has triumphed and Zionists backed with the entire world failed to achieve nay of the offensive goals.”

“So far, we have not known the announced goal of the offensive on Gaza, something which reflects the Israeli confusion.”

“The Israeli failure is apparent through the failure of the air force to end the battle,” Sayyed Nasrallah said, noting that there is an “Israeli intelligence failure concerning specifying the places where the Palestinian rockets are launched and stored.”

“The Israeli failure is apparent through its inability to reach the leadership of the resistance, as well as its inability to halt the rockets launch,” he said further.

“The Resistance in Gaza will itself impose the solution on the Israeli enemy,” Sayyed Nasrallah said, stressing that new equations will be produced, thanks to resistance achievements.

Meanwhile, Sayyed Nasrallah stated that “Our responsibilities today require us to put our disputes aside.”

He lashed out at some Arab states, saying “there are some calls by Arabs to crush Hamas. It is shameful that some Arabs are sympathetic with the enemy.”

“Arabs must work to protect the political leadership of the resistance and to stop pressing it in order to end the war and impose a truce,” his eminence added.

We Will Stay Beside Palestinian Resistance

“We must remind here that Iran, Hezbollah and Syria didn’t fall behind supporting the Palestinian resistance on all levels.”

“We in Hezbollah were and will stay beside the Palestinian people and all the resistance movements without exception,” Sayyed Nasrallah said, adding that the Lebanese resistance party “will offer whatever it can in order to support the resistance.”

“We in Hezbollah are closely following the details of the battle which is taking place in Gaza,” Sayyed Nasrallah added, as he addressed the Palestinian resistance, saying: “we are sure of your victory and we will do whatever we see is appropriate.”