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Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said this year's Quds Day marches are more "significant" than the years before, as thousands of people rallied across the country to show solidarity with Palestine, state media reported.
Quds Day was instated by Ruhollah Khomeini after the 1979 revolution and falls on the last Friday of Ramadan. Although demonstrations technically begin on Friday, crowds were seen waving the Iranian and Palestinian flags on Thursday, and burning the Israeli and American flags, across various cities in the country.
“Quds Day is always a sign of the unity and strength of the Iranian nation … and a sign that the Iranian nation … will not abandon the slogan of supporting Palestine," Mr Khamenei said in a televised address on Thursday night.
Naval commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Alireza Tangsiri vowed to "destroy" anyone who carries out acts of aggression against Iran.
Israel and Iran last year exchanged fire in tit-for-tat attacks that sparked fears of a protracted war between the two enemy states.
With Israel's continuing bombardment of the Gaza Strip where the death toll has surpassed 50,000 people since October 7, 2023, Iran's foreign ministry accused Israel of being emboldened by the full "political, military, financial and media support" of the US.
"The Zionist regime … has pursued the project of erasing Palestine with unprecedented intensity in the form of full-scale genocide," the statement said.
The foreign ministry described Quds Day as an opportunity for the world to express its rejection of "the greatest injustice of the 20th century", referring to Israel's occupation of Palestine.
Further demonstrations were seen on Thursday in Malaysia and Pakistan.
