By Wesam Bahrani
This year’s International Quds Day saw millions of people across the Islamic Republic of Iran pour into the streets to reaffirm their unwavering support and solidarity for the people of Palestine.
Emotions were high as people rallied to condemn the Israeli regime’s genocidal war against Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip, which has already claimed the lives of more than 33,000 people.
Amid the hustle and bustle of the annual rally in Tehran, two familiar faces were the cynosure of all eyes as they walked together to mark the day that was instituted by Imam Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Revolution, more than four decades ago.
They demonstrated in action what the great revolutionary leader strongly advocated: unity against the common enemies – the American hegemony and the Zionist apartheid.
The sight of Abu Fadak al-Mohamadawi, the chief of staff of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and the leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) Ziad al-Nakhaleh marching side-by-side in Tehran strongly reflected the reality of how far the legacy of late Imam Khomeini has reached.
That too on International Quds Day and in the Iranian capital, where it all began in 1979.
The rare public appearance of Abu Fadak, a highly respected Iraqi Shia military strategist and al-Nakhalah, a prominent Palestinian Sunni resistance leader, sent a powerful message to enemies.
Islamic Republic of Iran with its predominantly Shia population has withstood a myriad of economic hardships, crippling sanctions and acts of terrorism and sabotage for its pivotal role in supporting Palestine (with its predominantly Sunni population) against Zionist-American plots.
One of the plots has been to divide Sunni and Shia Muslims in a bid to consign the issue of Palestine and the occupation of Islam’s third holiest site in occupied al-Quds into oblivion.
However, owing to the wisdom and bravery of the Iranian nation, led by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, all such nefarious plots have been nipped into the bud.
These failed plots have been for years evident in countries such as Syria, Iraq and Yemen but more importantly in Palestine, where the Axis of Resistance, with its Sunni and Shia members, have together been fighting the Israeli-American war against Palestinians.
Abu Fadak and al-Nakhaleh are both designated as “terrorists” by the terrorist regime in Washington. Their crime has been advocating armed resistance against Zionist terrorism and colonialism.
Abu Fadak led the PMF following the US assassination of its former leader Abu Mehdi al-Muhandis, alongside Iran’s top anti-terror commander General Qasssem Soleimani outside the Baghdad International Airport on January 3, 2020.
In a speech on the occasion of the upcoming International Quds Day, Islamic Jihad Secretary-General Ziyad Al-Nakhaleh criticized the Arab government’s lack of support for Palestinians while calling on people to commemorate the Quds Day. #QudsDay2024 pic.twitter.com/Z7Puzm60By
— Press TV 🔻 (@PressTV) April 3, 2024
The predominantly Shia PMF, represented by all the religious and ethnic groups in Iraq, played an instrumental role in defeating the West-backed Daesh terrorist group in Iraq.
The predominantly Sunni PIJ is a powerful resistance movement in the blockaded Gaza Strip, which together with Hamas has forced the Israeli regime and its military to eat humble pie.
The leaders of the two resistance groups walking shoulder to shoulder on the streets of Tehran for the same cause is a clear representation of Sunni-Shia unity when taking into account how the beliefs and principles of these two men strongly match those of the late Imam Khomeini.
This awe-inspiring demonstration of unity in the Axis of Resistance, from Palestine to Iraq, from Shia to Sunni, united against the common enemy (the Axis of Genocide) was a statement in itself.
This unity in letter and spirit is what will pave the way for the victory of the oppressed against the oppressor. It is an image that has given shudders to the US the Anglo-American Zionist apologists.
Those who have openly betrayed the Palestinian cause, such as the Al Khalifa monarchy ruling over the oppressed people of Bahrain, will be shaken by the sight of two resistance lynchpins together.
This united stance, which is growing stronger by the day as a result of the genocidal war on Gaza, spells the beginning of the end for those aiding the Zionist occupation.
The irony is that the US and the UK in particular, who declare themselves as the leaders of the “free world” and “democracy”, share close ties with the Al Khalifa regime and ilk.
While more than 16,000 Palestinian children have been killed in the past six months, thousands have been rendered hopeless and many more are starving, state TV in Bahrain has had rolling coverage on everything except Gaza. The slaughter of Palestinians has no news value for them.
Real-life heroes such as Abu Fadak and al-Nakhaleh have seen their popularity grow over the past six months as they have refused to be cowed down against the occupying regime.
On the other hand, those Muslim-Arab leaders who betrayed the people of Gaza during their hour of need will soon be forgotten and consigned to the bins of history books.
Abu Fadek and al-Nakhalah earned their freedom after years of struggle and resistance. They represent a growing number of like-minded people of resistance who have mutual respect for each other.
The Leader of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, has repeatedly emphasized the need for mutual respect between the Shia and Sunni and their leaders as the key to foiling foreign plots, freeing Palestine from occupation and ushering in regional peace and security.
The Secretary-General of Lebanon’s Hezbollah resistance movement (predominantly Shia but includes Sunni members also), Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah, has followed suit by supporting the people of Gaza.
This support stretches back decades before Hezbollah’s latest operations in the aftermath of Operation al-Aqsa Storm (al-Aqsa Flood) and the genocidal Zionist war on Gaza.
It is not surprising that the Palestinians in Gaza who are 99 percent Sunni have regularly praised the Axis of Resistance (a growing Shia-Sunni axis) and on top of them the Islamic Republic of Iran after defeating the Israeli occupation forces in numerous wars over the past two decades.
Only through this Shia-Sunni unity and unity in the Axis of Resistance can Palestine be free, from the River to the Sea. And the day is not far when they will pray together at Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Wesam Bahrani is an Iraqi journalist and commentator.
(The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of Press TV.
