Iran denied Monday any direct involvement with the deadly Hamas terror assault on Israel over the weekend, pushing back on growing suspicion that the Gaza-based militant group must have had significant help to execute such a well-coordinated attack.
The denials from Iran’s mission to the United Nations came after a Wall Street Journal report, citing senior Hamas and Hezbollah officials, said Iranian security officials helped plan the attack.
Tehran has praised the operation, which has killed hundreds of Israelis and seen dozens more taken hostage. But the Islamic republic denied any direct links to it.
“The resolute measures taken by Palestine constitute a wholly legitimate defense against seven decades of oppressive occupation and heinous crimes committed by the illegitimate Zionist regime,” the Iranian U.N. mission said in a statement, according to the country’s state-run Fars News Agency.
“We are not involved in Palestine’s response, as it is taken solely by Palestine itself,” the statement said.
U.S. officials have said that they so far have not seen evidence that Iran was involved in the planning or execution of the attack itself.
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But Iran is Hamas’ primary financial backer, and it seems a virtual certainty that Iranian money helped Hamas carry out the operation.
“There’s a long relationship between Iran and Hamas. In fact, Hamas wouldn’t be Hamas without the support that it’s gotten over many years from Iran,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday.
“We haven’t yet seen direct evidence that Iran was behind this particular attack. … But the support over many years is clear. It’s one of the reasons that over the last couple of years we have been resolutely working against Iran’s support for terrorism, for destabilizing actions in other countries,” Mr. Blinken said.
Tehran has openly praised the assault, which saw innocent Israelis slaughtered at a music festival and children and the elderly reportedly taken hostage by Hamas gunmen. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi late Sunday called on the Muslim world to back Hamas’ war on Israel.
“Muslim governments must enter the scene along with the Islamic community in supporting the Palestinian people. The Zionist enemy should also understand that the equation has changed; warmongering is detrimental to the Zionists,” Mr. Raisi said, according to Iranian media.
“The Palestinian people are victorious in this battle.”
• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.
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