The Nuclear Deal: No pause in Iran's vow to destroy Israel
By Lt. Col. (ret.) Michael Segall
web posted August 24, 2015
Iran's Supreme Leader is the Main Agitator for the Destruction of Israel
Sixteen years after his death, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's founding vision — that the eradication of Zionism is an inevitable precondition for redeeming contemporary Islam — keeps guiding the current generation of Iran's religious, political and military establishment. To him the destruction of Zionism was an axiom never to be questioned or strayed from and an objective to be perpetually and actively pursued. According to this vision, Israel should be fought as part of a protracted global struggle between Islam and the West, which "planted intentionally the Zionist Entity in the heart of Islamic World."
Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was faithful to this doctrine, making it the centerpiece of his foreign policy; current President Hassan Rouhani, his successor for the last two years, is also faithful to this doctrine, just less obvious. Notwithstanding, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei bears the torch and is the chief agitator for the extermination of Israel, spreading this message worldwide over social media, such as Twitter and Facebook, books and addressing various target audiences in English, Arabic and Persian.
The Iranian religious, political, intellectual and military elite support and repeat Khamenei's messages. Members of the Iranian Army high command (as opposed to the Revolutionary Guards) have even declared their willingness and capability to destroy Israel, once the leader's order is given. Practically speaking, the regime's intelligence and international subversion agencies, mostly the Revolutionary Guards Quds Force, massively support anti-Israel terror groups and stage repeated conferences in Iran dedicated to denial of the Holocaust and to the deligitimization of Israel's right to exist.
Anti-Israel Propaganda as the Zeitgeist
Current Iranian anti-Israeli rhetoric is nothing but an adjustment of the battle cries from the 1979 Revolution to the unfolding of new Middle East geopolitics, especially the Islamic Awakening, as Iranian leaders refer to the Arab Spring uprisings, and the recent Israeli-Palestinian clashes.
Iran's current leadership, especially Revolutionary Guards leaders who progress to assume political senior positions as Parliament (Majlis) members, cabinet ministers, provincial governors and captains of economy, interpret Iran's perceived "divine" international achievements as signs of the Mahdi's messianic coming, reaffirming to them Khomeini's revolutionary, activist Shiism. These signs include Iran's retaining its nuclear program, defying Western sanctions and signing a historical nuclear deal; the repeated successes of Iranian-backed Palestinian and terror groups, namely Hamas, and Palestine Islamic Jihad, Hizbullah, in standing up to Israel; the disintegration of Arab states and the Arab world; and the Islamic Awakening. They believe that just as Khomeini "prophesied" the downfall of the USSR and Saddam's Iraq, his prophecy about Israel's destruction must also come true. Iran can facilitate its downfall either by fighting Israel or by massively supporting anti-Israel terror groups. The nuclear deal establishing Iran as a threshold nuclear state with fast breakout capabilities to a nuclear bomb will enable Iran to increase its efforts in hastening Khomeini's prophecy.
The intensive propaganda for the destruction of Israel is just part of the Iranian regime's activities aimed at "exporting the revolution," allowing Iran to pose as a champion of the Palestinian issue, as well as fulfilling Khomeini's vision of destroying Israel. This championing assumes the form of supplying various weapons — from sniper rifles, anti-tank (AT) missiles, rockets and drones — to terror groups attacking Israel's southern border (the Gaza-based Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad), and its northern border (Lebanese Hizbullah).
Throughout the last year, and especially since the 2014 Israel-Gaza conflict, the Iranian Supreme Leader ran an extensive campaign to provide West Bank Palestinians with weapons "just like the Gaza groups have," and was widely supported by the Iranian Army, as well as the Revolutionary Guards High Command.
The aforementioned conflict coincided with the Iranian holiday Yom Al-Quds, or Jerusalem Day, celebrated since 1979 not only in Iran but all over the Islamic world on the last Friday of Ramadan to demonstrate Muslims' desire to "liberate" Jerusalem from Israeli domination. It is celebrated by anti-Israeli and anti-American belligerent rhetoric and with calls to destroy Israel, "the regime occupying Jerusalem," and "Death to America."
In short, Khomeini's teachings, including the wish to destroy Israel, keep defining the Islamic Revolution's purposes.
Iran's anti-Israeli rhetoric is practically the only common denominator between it and the predominantly Sunni Arab world surrounding it, allowing it to somewhat bridge Arab-Persian ethnic tensions and the widening Sunni-Shiite religious schism even as the Middle East rapidly embraces Sunni radicalism, Islamic State-style. Anti-Israeli rhetoric also allows Iran to reach out to international anti-Israel and anti-Jewish elements, such as Holocaust deniers and the BDS movement, in an attempt to delegitimize Israel's existence. Iran has already hosted several congresses on these issues.
Meanwhile, when negotiating with Western powers, Iran sugar-coats its belligerent ideology, presenting it as the "Iranian Peace Plan," which is repeatedly mentioned by several Iranian officials, including Khamenei. As part of this peace plan, Iran calls for "a just and permanent solution of the Palestinian Question," which in practice means the elimination of the Jewish State and wins the attention of several anti-Israel Western-based groups. Its major points are:
- Repatriation of all the Palestinian diaspora;
- A referendum on the future system of government in "Palestine," in which "only the genuine inhabitants of Palestine" (Muslims, Christians, and Jews other than those who immigrated after 1948) may vote;
- The future State of Palestine should decide the fate of Jewish immigrants to Palestine for the last 50 years.
On May 9, 2015, in the midst of the final stages of the nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1, Iran hosted the Second International Holocaust Cartoon Contest. The first was held in 2005, and was marked by Holocaust denial propaganda. It came to be the defining moment of Ahmadinejad's eight-year presidency.
The contest was organized by the House of Cartoon and the Sarcheshmeh Cultural Center, chaired by Massoud Shojai Tabatabayai, who also heads the House of Cartoon. In his words, the purpose of the contest was to expose Western double standards regarding freedom of speech, since Western states permit insults to Islam, such as those delivered by Charlie Hebdo, yet suppress any examination of the Holocaust and Israel. In his words, he decided to challenge the West on the issue of Western oversensitivity to the Holocaust.
As the House of Cartoon put it: "If freedom of expression knows no boundary, the issue of the Holocaust must also be critically and freely reviewed."
In short, Iranian leaders, first and foremost its Supreme Leader Khamenei, keep preaching for the destruction of Israel, escalating anti-Israeli armed struggle and internationally delegitimizing Israel. They have not moderated their anti-Israel and anti-Zionist rhetoric, even during the critical stages of the nuclear talks with the West, as if the nuclear talks were completely dissociated from Iranian foreign policy, Moreover, Iran went as far as to argue that the talks do not indicate any Iranian-American rapprochement.
Accepting Iran as a nuclear threshold state capable of launching a military nuclear program, should it decide to, will allow it to intensify its direct anti-Israel aggression and its subversive activity against moderate Arab states, such as Egypt and the Gulf states, now under a nuclear umbrella.
Examples of Anti-Israeli Rhetoric and Activities by Iranian Leaders and Pro-Regime Armed Groups
Iranian Leader calls to destroy Israel and approves of terrorism:
Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei Reaffirmed "Death to Israel" "Death to America" Slogan in his addresses marking the conclusion of the Eid Al-Fitr holiday, July 18, 2015.
"The slogans of the Iranian nation on Al-Qods Day show what its position is. The slogans ‘Death to Israel' and ‘Death to America' have resounded throughout the country, and are not limited to Tehran and the other large cities. The entire country is under the umbrella of this great movement (of ‘Death to Israel / America')."
The only solution to the Palestinian Question is destroying Israel
Addressing student groups on July 23, 2014, Khamenei referred to events in Gaza, stating: "These indescribable crimes reveal the true nature of this wolfish, child-slaying regime, and must only be treated by total annihilation of it. Until then, the only way to face this barbarous regime is through uncompromising armed resistance by the Palestinians, which should be spread to the West Bank."
Referring to the tragedies suffered by the oppressed people of Gaza, the Islamic Revolution Leader added, "These events are examples of the brutal iron-fist policy this illegitimate and false regime has been perpetrating, most arrogantly and insolently, during its 66-year long existence."
The Leader stressed, "As Imam Khomeini ordered, Israel must be destroyed, and its annihilation is the only real solution. Yet it does not mean the annihilation of the Jews in the region. This is a reasonable plan and there is a practical way to carry it out, which the Islamic Republic has presented to the international community [the so-called "Iranian Peace Plan"].
He also said: "Following the internationally accepted plan, the people who are genuine inhabitants of the region should hold a referendum, on their preferred system of government, thus annulling this false, occupying regime."
The Islamic Revolution Leader also said: "Until, by Allah's help, this brutal, murderous regime is annulled, this destructive regime must be treated with powerful and resolute armed resistance."
"Let nobody suppose that the Zionist regime would have compromised if it was not for Gaza's rockets: since the West Bank has neither rockets nor even firearms, the only weapon of the people there being stones, the regime slays and degrades the people there."
Due to all these events, we believe that the West Bank must be armed like Gaza, and everyone who cares for Palestine must act in this field, strengthening the Palestinians and weakening the Zionist enemy, in order to ease the ordeal of the Palestinians."
Whether there is a nuclear deal or not, Israel is not going to be secure:
Khamenei's address to the Supreme Council of Basij-e Mostazafin, Sunday, August 31, 2014:
"Israel will grow less safe day by day, whether there is a nuclear deal or not. (Referring to U.S. officials expressing concerns about the deal's influence on Israel's security, he said): Bear this in mind that Israel will never be secure, with or without a nuclear deal."
After the nuclear deal was finalized, Khamenei retweeted the "Whether there is a nuclear deal or not, Israel is not going to be secure" tweet adding a short YouTube video demonstrating massive missile launchings.
The Islamic Revolution Leader addressing the Supreme Council of the Basij: "Thanks to Basij ideology, Iran is invincible. We do not disapprove of proceeding with the talks. With or without a deal, Israel will grow less secure day-by-day; the Iranian Government is supported by the Basij in taking anti-sanction economic measures."
Addressing U.S. officials speaking about the necessity to safeguard Israel as part of the nuclear talks, Khamenei said: "Bear this in mind. Israel will never be secure, with or without a nuclear deal."
"We are currently witnessing the reviving and invigorating effect of the Basij spirit in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Gaza, and by Allah's Grace, we shall witness it in Jerusalem, for the sake of saving Al-Aqsa."
To make it clear, he said: "The main purpose of U.S. officials is to please the international association of Zionist capitalists since it bribes them with money and senior positions, and, should they defy it, it threatens, shames and even terrorizes them."
Arm The West Bank
Israel will be destroyed soon:
Follower of [Revolutionary Guard Commander Qasem] Soleimani: "Indeed, [it takes a missile] no more than seven minutes to reach Tel Aviv. At the Leader's command, it will be destroyed."
"We have strengthened and we will continue to strengthen the fists of our Palestinian brothers in Gaza and elsewhere. As I have declared, the West Bank must be armed and prepared for defense just like Gaza is."
Foreign Minister Zariv, nuclear negotiator, "Annihilate Israel"
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who is in charge of the nuclear talks, responds in an interview to Khamenei's Twitter message calling to annihilate Israel:
Ann Curry: So how does Iran want to annihilate the regime of Israel, since you are making the difference?
Javad Zarif: We do not want to annihilate. We do not want to…
Ann Curry: Well, the Supreme Leader–
Javad Zarif: …annihilate anybody.
Ann Curry: tweeted that…
Javad Zarif: We have…the…well, what he says…
Ann Curry: …it should be annihilated.
Ann Curry: .it should be annihilated.
Javad Zarif: It– it should be annihilated. That this regime is a threat, is a threat. A regime that engages in the killing of innocent children, a regime that engages in acts of aggression. Iran has not invaded any other country. We have not threatened to use force. Exactly the opposite of Israel. Israel threatens to use force against Iran almost on a daily basis. And it has a record. Of course if they did use force against Iran, we would defend ourselves, as we have done with great sacrifice in the past. But we are not invading, we are not threatening anybody. We have not threatened anybody for 250 years. We have a record to prove what we say. It [Israel] does not. It has a record full of infanticide, killing innocent people, aggression against its neighbors, and occupation. That does not give them the authority to talk about others the way they do.
Revolutionary Guard Commander Mohammad Ali Jafari declares that the struggle will go on until the Zionist Regime is annihilated
Revolutionary Guard Commander Mohammad Ali Jafari declared at the funeral ceremony of martyred commander Mohammad Ali Allahdadi, "We shall proceed with the jihad, resistance and martyrdom until Jerusalem is liberated and the Zionist regime, that stigma among Islamic peoples, is erased."
"The Commander said the way of jihad is full of risks, and to achieve the objectives of the Islamic Revolution, we must wholeheartedly follow the path of jihad, making every possible effort."
Referring to the martyrs whose example we must follow, he stated: "The lesson we should learn from them is we must prepare ourselves to follow the path of jihad for the sake of the Islamic Revolution."
He also said: "We thank God since by the blood of the martyrs, Iran is more secure within its borders, and all its borders are peaceful. Likewise, outside Iran's borders, the Islamic Revolution is making progress toward achieving the objectives of Imam Khomeini and the martyrs."
On Friday, July 25, 2015, Facebook pages and websites associated with the Revolutionary Guards reported the statement of commander of the force Mohammad Ali Jafari that Israel will be wiped out in 24 hours once the order for jihad is given by Iranian Leader Imam Ali Khamenei.
Among the platforms publishing Jafari's statement was a Facebook page associated with the Revolutionary Guards and Soft Warfare [psychological warfare] officers' sites, and the Sangriha social network [a network for "those interested in the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq War"].
According to these sites, the Revolutionary Guards Commander said, "Once the Supreme Leader orders all forces to start jihad, we can reduce Israel to dust within 24 hours. Our missiles have been eager to be launched for years."
Commenting on the 2014 Israel-Hamas conflict, former Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati refers to Israel as a "tumor."
(Velayati is currently the Iranian Supreme Leader's advisor on international affairs. Formerly, he served as the head of Regime's Expediency Discernment Council, the research arm of the Council's Center for Strategic Research, and as Secretary General of the World Assembly of Islamic Awakening. He served as Iranian Foreign Minister from 1981 to 1997 under Prime Minister Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Presidents Ali Khamenei and Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, and was a candidate in the 2013 presidential election).
He said; "It is deplorable that in this vicious and asymmetric war, the great powers and international organizations, instead of criticizing the aggression of this excessive and war-mongering regime, stand for the evildoer, blaming the oppressed and defenseless people of Gaza as being the main reason for the war."
"Standing up to this repressive policy, we ask all Muslims, Islamic governments, and all pro-freedom movements and organizations, especially the Islamic Conference Organization: Condemn these evil actions against the oppressed people, and as before, stand united for the resistance and the cause of Palestine through unity, solidarity and activity on the ground. Permanently humiliate and disintegrate this tumor."
Quds News Agency reports: Ali Akbar Velayati, Head of the Strategic Research Center under the Regime's Expediency Discernment Council, in an interview with the press, responded to the brutal statements of Moshe Ya'alon, War Minister of the Zionist regime, who justified the Nuclear Bombing of Hiroshima, saying that his words are just another example of the desperate efforts of criminals, throughout history, to justify their barbarous acts. He also said that if the Zionist regime's officials aim at threatening other people with their nuclear bomb, let them know that with one wrong move on their part, the Israeli occupation regime will be wiped out even before they can use their nuclear weapon."
February 11, 2015:
Commander of Iran's Basij Force (the IRGC'S volunteer arm) Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi, declares that the U.S. and Israel, like all insolent powers, are doomed to destruction, once Iranian people stand united."
On the occasion of Islamic Revolution Day, he declared: "The people of Iran cried "Death to Bakhtiar (the last pre-revolution Iranian Prime Minister, murdered in 1991 by Iranian secret agents), and he is in history's dustbin; they cried "Death to Saddam," and we all saw how Saddam ended up. They cried "Death to the USSR," and now it is gone."
The will of the Iranian people brought down the 2,500-year-long monarchy. So now Iranian people, through solidarity, cry "Death to America and Israel."
The U.S. and Israel, like all insolent powers, are doomed to destruction, once the Iranian people stand united.
Naqdi declared: "If the Iranian people wished to surrender, they would have done so when Israel could stand up to all Middle Eastern states, not now, when it is as weak as a mouse, at the hands of the resistance fighters of Palestine and Lebanon."17
August 25, 2014:
Naqdi promises Netanyahu: the Resistance tunnels will reach Tel Aviv
"We tell Netanyahu that 35 years after the U.S. President gave him guarantees, America will be the most defeated country. We promise that the West Bank will be armed, and the resistance tunnels shall reach Tel Aviv. Mark my words. Moreover, I promise that someday, news channels will report about Zionist boats sinking in an attempt to reach Cyprus and nearby islands."
He also remarked: "America cannot even guarantee its own survival, and is the world's most humiliated country." The Basij commander also said: "We expect that at the next meeting of the UN Assembly, the U.S. President will be smacked so hard that the whole world will hear it."18
August 26 2014:
Revolutionary Guards Deputy Commander Hussein Salami, said: "Our response to the Zionist provocations will not be a diplomatic one."
Referring to Israeli aggression against Iran [the alleged attempts of Israeli Intelligence to enter the Natanz Nuclear Facility], he said: "Our response will not be a diplomatic one. It will be in the field, and we certainly will not say it in words, but in actions, so the enemy can see, realize and feel."
"We see the helplessness of the Zionist regime's officials, who realize that these are the very last years or months of their lives."
"The Basij idea burns in Gaza, sweeps Lebanon, and defeats the great powers in Syria. Similarly, all areas controlled by the Zionist regime are under cross-fire since the recent event [the 2014 Israeli-Hamas conflict] only the Zionist regime's land is under their control. Everything indicates this regime cannot survive. The chances of it being wiped out are better than ever before during its 66-year-long false existence, and this will happen very soon."
"Once we arm the West Bank, the Zionist regime will be wiped out automatically."
"We will send them every weapon system and any support the enemy may think of, and we will do it openly."
"We are defending the Palestinian uprising, the Muslims of Lebanon, the Syrian people and regime, the integrity of Iraq, and the independence, willpower, freedom and identity of our Revolution.
The Zionist regime consists of rejects from all over the world, and they run away from their corner of the world whenever they face heavy fire."
July 25, 2014:
Hussein Salami in an address before the Friday sermon: "No single point in the Zionist regime's land is safe; the people of Palestine shall hold their peace no longer."
The deputy commander said that nowadays, not a single spot in the territories controlled by the Zionists is safe any longer; the Palestinian resistance has missiles with further range than the Zionists expect.
When Imam Khomeini declared that Israel must be obliterated, he sincerely delivered a message to the word, and it brightened the minds of Muslims, and its meaning was revealed in Syria, Lebanon and Palestine.
"The Zionist regime has erected hundreds of kilometers of long high concrete walls around the areas it controls, since the entry of a single Palestinian or Lebanese youth can be a nightmarish and destructive threat to their national security."
"The Zionist regime is gradually preparing its own obliteration. The Islamic Revival movement is armed, and was capable during the 33-day war [the 2006 Israel-Hizbullah conflict], of dealing the greatest defeat ever to the legendary Israeli Army. The Zionist is no longer confident of its Merkava tanks, helicopters and aircraft. During the 22-day (the 2008 Gaza War) and the 8-day long (2012 Gaza War) asymmetric conflicts, the Islamic Jihad scored a most memorable victory for the Palestinian uprising."
He also said: "The time of the Zionist regime's undoing has come: The Islamic Revival movement is armed and [they have] stockpiled missiles. We see how the weapons of the resistance, in one corner of the Islamic world, is capable of facing the barbarous attacks of the Zionist regime on the oppressed and defenseless people of Palestine, and becoming politically active in a new arena."
Salami declared that nowadays, the Zionists are no longer safe in any single spot in the occupied lands. He also said that the 22-Day War and the 8-Day War forged a heroic resistance, and currently, the Palestinian resistance has missiles with longer range than the Zionists expect.
He also said: "The balance of power has turned in favor of the Islamic World, and we warn the Zionists: you are a bunch of rootless people, a motley crew with no common history, or any other elements to make you a people."
He stressed: "What else other than these attacks could have empowered the resistance?! After any war Israel initiated, the Muslims grew stronger: when it occupied Lebanon, Hizbullah was born, and the Israeli nightmare that Hizbullah will shoot the deadly bullet at the Zionist regime."
Addressing Zionists, Salami said: "You are a rootless tree, planted by the British in Islamic territory. We will chase you from house to house, avenging every single drop of our martyrs' blood in Palestine. This is the beginning of Islamic peoples' awakening for the sake of crushing you."
Salami stressed that "Palestine shall hold its peace no longer. We are positive this will happen, just like the Muslim people of Iran and all other Muslim peoples have been acting under the inspiration of Imam Khomeini's orders."
Salami declared: "We are expecting even greater dawns, and we are confident the Quranic promises will come true, making the Islamic world the graveyard of American policy and the Zionist regime, as well as that of their regional allies, while the banner of Islam keeps flying."20
September 1, 2014
Iranian Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan said the Zionist will win wars no longer.
He said: "The brave struggle of the Palestinian warriors against the Zionist invaders, and the courageous resistance of the people of Gaza to the most massive air raids and missile and artillery firing by the Zionist child-killers, forced the Zionist to retreat. The will power of the people of Gaza has repeatedly taught the historic lesson that confidence in Allah, resistance and selflessness overpower invaders equipped with the best of weapons and humiliated the enemy.
He also said: "Any new regional provocation by the Zionists will irreversibly shorten its criminal, dirty and deceitful existence, while enhancing the resolution and capability of the resistance to respond to the evils of the Zionist regime."
He referred to the Zionist regime, ISIS, turncoats (Iranian opposition groups) and other brutal, extremist groups, who are fighting against humanity and all monotheistic religions, promising them an end worse than that of Saddam Hussein. In his words: "Thanks to the alertness and resistance of the regional peoples, their final disintegration is drawing near."
The Defense Minister concluded his speech by commemorating and glorifying the heroic martyrs of Gaza, saying: "The blood of these martyrs will bury the Zionist regime, washing Palestine and Jerusalem of their filthy existence."21
February 26, 2015
Hojatoleslam Ali Shirazi, Khamenei's representative in Iran's Al-Quds Force, said in a Sanctuary's Defenders' commemoration ceremony:
"Let the Zionists know that we will avenge Martyr Allahdadi [the Iranian general killed in an alleged Israeli air strike in Syria]."
"Currently, in every country we look at, we see the number of martyrdom-seekers grow day by day: for instance, the number of Shiites in Nigeria has increased from 7 million to 20 million, and the last Jerusalem Day procession in Nigeria was attended by more than 6 million people, of whom 3 were killed and one injured."
"Recently in Syria and Lebanon, the Zionist enemy attacked six Hizbullah commanders who accompanied Allahdadi. One of those was the son of Imad Mughniyah, the fourth martyr of the family."
"The world planned to finish off the people of Iran and humiliate all of Islam and Islamic peoples, but what happened? Who can achieve this? Today, the blood of your martyrs is transforming the world, invigorating the martyrdom-seekers in Syria, Iraq, Egypt and Yemen."
"Today, the world is witnessing the list for martyrdom, for standing for one's dignity, for dying for Islam and the Quran. The enemies wanted to finish off the Islamic Republic, but now they see that the power of the Islamic Republic sets an example for all Islamic countries."
"The Islamic Community is familiar with the wretchedness and enmity of the Zionists and will not let them have their way. It will not rest until it avenges the blood of its martyrs killed by the Zionist regime [….] We have already hit two Israeli warships, destroyed nine Israeli combat vehicles, and killed 17 servicemen, but do not even imagine that this is the end of our revenge. It is just the beginning. And we shall not rest until we see no longer the sinful Zionist regime."
"We shall not rest until the banner of Islam flies over the White House. This is the wish of the Islamic Community, and thanks to this resolution and divine protection we should forcefully stand up to the world of insolents."
General Yahya Rahim Safavi said: [on the occasion of the Jerusalem Day Procession] "We should be targeting the Zionist regime in its territory as well as the entire region." Khamenei's chief advisor and assistant, and former Revolutionary Guards Commander, stated: "We must weaken the Zionist regime's security in its territory, the region and worldwide, undermining it morally, economically, and politically."
Referring to the strategic misjudgment of the leaders of the regime that occupies Jerusalem, he said: "The political and military reality of the asymmetric war between an armed criminal regime and the defense of the people of Palestine, on the 18th day of fighting [in the 2014 Gaza War], demonstrates that the fury and loathing of 1.6 billion Muslims and the public opinion of all of the international community, even in Europe and America, has turned against this illegitimate, artificial Zionist regime, which breeds ill for its leaders."
Commenting on the situation of the liberation of Jerusalem and occupied Palestinian territories, Safavi said: "Reinforcing the jihadi groups, especially in the West Bank, the population of which is twice that of Gaza, particularly arming these groups, demonstrating solidarity and unity of all Islamic states and peoples, to support the people of Palestine politically, economically and media-wise, are effective measures to the end of liberating Palestine, in which the entire Islamic world should be engaged".
"We must undermine the security of the Zionist regime in its territory, the region and worldwide, weakening it morally, economically, and politically, making the Americans pay dearly for protecting it."
"Isolating the Zionist economy from the regional and world economy, boycotting Israeli products and any commercial transactions with this fictitious regime can effectively harm it."
Referring to the necessity of "soft warfare" against the threats of this regime in the region, he said: "It seems that for the sake of liberating Jerusalem, we should target the virtual interests of the Zionists with cyber warfare and Soft Warfare in all fields, against the occupants of Palestine, in order to force them to emigrate out of Palestinian territory."
The Supreme Leader's Chief Advisor concluded by saying: "The Zionist tumor in the region is the real enemy of the Islamic community and the way to eliminate it is the solidarity of Islamic peoples, and reinforcing jihad and Islamic resistance all the way to the ultimate victory."23
Hatred for Israel permeates the culture
A senior member of the Teheran University faculty commented on a book predicting the destruction of Israel.
Dr. Rasul Jafarian, a member of the scientific committee at the Faculty of History at Tehran University, in a new posting in his Weblog named "The Experts," commented on a book in Persian calculating the year of Israel's destruction.
This book, published a few months ago, predicts that Israel will be destroyed in the year 2022, relying on occult sciences, Quran interpretation and mathematical calculations. It was displayed in a Tehran bookstore and many prominent people commented on it.
Well, many Muslims wish to see Israel disappear, just like many freedom-lovers of the world. This book is a curious combination of solid science, but mostly predictions, based on astrology, numerology, and talismans. But I believe that such interpretations of the Quran must be examined more closely before being published.24
January 21, 2015
[Mohsen Rafighdoost was one of the founders of the Revolutionary Guards and the Minister of the Revolutionary Guards during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq War, as well as chairman of the Foundation of the Oppressed, a powerful financial body in the Islamic Republic]
Mohsen Rafighdoost, former Minister of the Revolutionary Guards, declared in a press conference on the occasion of a Hizbullah martyrs' commemoration: "The countdown to the annihilation of Israel has begun. The Zionist regime that frightened all the Arab states is no more. Now, we wish to be in the front line of the fight for liberating Jerusalem."
"I expect the annihilation of Israel to be soon enough, and America can do no harm in the region either. Definitely, after the 33-Day War, the Zionists have proved to be helpless against Gaza and the resistance."
The former Minister referred to a key point made by Imam Khomeini about the necessity of revolutionizing and globalizing Islam: "We are in the third phase of the Revolution, fighting for freedom in the heart of America, so the first regime to be destroyed is Israel."25
May 22, 2015:
Ahmad Alamolhoda, Friday prayer leader at the Mashhad Great Mosque, said: "The beginning of a proxy-war against Iran is as good as the end of Israel."
In a political speech as part of the Friday Sermon, the prayer leader of the Mashhad Great Mosque said: "If America starts a proxy war on Iran, our patriotic soldiers will reduce Israel to dust with missiles."
Referring to the Holy Defense [the 1980-1988 War with Iraq], he also said: "America has already waged a proxy-war on us, but our people survived it for eight years, without any means."
"Should we accept the demands of the insolents now, when our missiles are as advanced as those of other countries, and our boys have managed to reverse-engineer an American UAV [probably the shot-down RQ-170] and mass-produce it?"
"The party with whom we had the last round of talks is not the U.S. Government, but the U.S. Congress, where there are over 200 Zionist senators who want to bring our country to its knees."
"Their purpose in this negotiation is to make us give up everything, all our state secrets, in return for $30 billion of our frozen assets. But should we give up everything we have for that sum?"
"If this deal is concluded, and then America starts a proxy-war on us, the first action of our patriotic soldiers will be to wipe out, with their missiles, that illegitimate child of America, namely Israel."
May 18, 2015:
Rahimian: The essential role of the Iranian people in the annihilation of Israel.
Mohammad-Hassan Rahimian, the Supreme Leader's representative at the Martyrs Foundation and Veterans Affairs and Member of the Board of Trustees of the Association for the Defense of the Palestinian people.
Speaking on the occasion of the 67th anniversary of the Palestinian Disaster at the Science and Industry University, to an Iranian such as a member of Islamic Revolution Foundation, and Palestinians, including the Palestinian Ambassador and a representative of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and youths from Gaza, he said:
"'The ground for the Palestinian Disaster was prepared decades before, and that day is becoming the concern of the entire Islamic World.'
He declared that Imam Khomeini was the first Shiite and Islamic religious scholar who issued a religious ruling concerning the Zionist regime, which has been serving as Islamic legitimacy for the people of Palestine."
As a member of the Society for Defending the People of Palestine, he said: "We believe that humankind shall see the annihilation of the tumor called Israel, and the vanguard people of Iran should play a major role in it." 
IDF Lt.-Col. (ret.) Michael (Mickey) Segall, an expert on strategic issues with a focus on Iran, terrorism, and the Middle East, is a senior analyst at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs and at Foresight Prudence.