Iran Supreme Leader backs Palestine, urges resistance against Israel

Tehran, June 26 (SURYAA) Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Monday called the cause of Palestine as a major issue of the Islamic world and urged Muslims to fight Israel with "whatever means possible".

Khamenei made the remarks in an address to a gathering of Iranians in the capital Tehran, reports Xinhua news agency.

"According to Islamic jurisprudence, when an enemy takes over Muslim lands, jihad in any possible form becomes everyone's duty," Khamenei was quoted by Press TV as saying.

"Palestine is the number one issue of the Islamic world, but some Islamic countries are acting in such a way that as if the Palestinian case had been ignored and forgotten.

"Today the fight against the Zionist regime is obligatory and necessary for Muslims," he said, urging unity among the Muslim states. "Division and discord are harmful to Islam and the Islamic Ummah (nation)."

On Friday, people chanted anti-Israel and anti-US slogans and carried banners condemning Israel's continued occupation of Palestinian lands.