Supporters of the Islamic Republic of Iran allegedly showed their support for Hamas by waving Palestinian flags during a football match in Tehran, according to a video shared on X by the vice president of the National Union for Democracy in Iran, Cameron Khansarinia. Indignant, multiple spectators present in the stands then responded by chanting insults.
The video, which is currently neither authenticated nor dated, was shared on the evening of Sunday October 8, before going viral. We see Iranian supporters, dressed in red jerseys, shouting against the holders of Palestinian flags. According to Cameron Khansarinia, “Iranian fans chanted throughout the stadium: ‘Take that Palestinian flag and shove it up your ass!’ The phrase chanted by the supporters is also subtitled in English in the video.
Cameron Khansarinia ends his tweet with the hashtag “Iranians stand with Israel”. A way of showing that part of public opinion in Iran would support Israel, unlike the Iranian government.
Iran is indeed one of the known supporters of Hamas. According to the American newspaper The Wall Street Journal, Iranian security officials even helped plan Hamas’ surprise attack this Saturday.
In the procession of international reactions this weekend, unsurprisingly, the Iranian government welcomed a “proud operation” launched by Hamas: “Iran supports the legitimate defense of the Palestinian nation,” declared President Ebrahim on Sunday. Raissi. “The Zionist regime and its supporters […] must be held responsible in this matter.”
Hamas launched a major offensive in Israel on Saturday morning, leaving more than 900 dead and 2,600 injured, according to an official army report on Tuesday October 10. The Israeli state responded and bombed more than 1,200 targets this weekend in the Gaza Strip. Palestine reports 700 people killed and 3,700 injured, according to local authorities. On Tuesday, Israel announced that it had found around 1,500 bodies of Hamas fighters on its soil.
Israel also bombed the outskirts of a border village in southern Lebanon on Monday, with the Israeli army claiming to have killed “a number of suspected activists” following their infiltration from Lebanese territory. Lebanese Hezbollah, which had fired on Israeli positions on the border the day before, denied any involvement in the infiltration.