Iran celebrates Hamas attacks on Israel, Parliamentarians scream ‘Death to Israel’

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The story: Senior Iranian officials have hailed the Hamas movement’s surprise attack on Israel. Meanwhile, Iranian media have also praised the Palestinian blitz, with one paper linking it to recent comments by the supreme leader insisting that Israel’s existence is nearing its end.
However, Tehran has refrained from claiming any involvement in the offensive—with some senior figures highlighting that Hamas is “independent.”
In a statement issued to Amwaj.media, the Iranian mission to the United Nations further described “the decisions” made by Hamas as “fiercely autonomous,” adding that Iran “is not involved in Palestine’s response.”
The coverage: Hamas on Oct. 7 launched a surprise attack against Israel in an operation dubbed “Al-Aqsa Flood.”

• Hamas fighters infiltrated Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip, taking hostages and killing both civilians as well as military personnel.
  
  
• An Israeli government press release on Oct. 8 stated that more than 600 Israelis had been killed and over 100 kidnapped. It added that at least 2,000 people had been injured.
  
  
• Following Israeli airstrikes in response to the attack, the health ministry in Gaza said on Oct. 8 that at least 370 residents had been killed and over 2,000 wounded.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi on Oct. 8 commended Hamas for the operation in a phone call with the Palestinian movement’s politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh.

• Raisi said the Palestinian “resistance” was a source of “pride” for the Islamic world, adding that the Oct. 7 operation had “fulfilled the expectations” of the Palestinians.
  
  
• Raisi also issued a message celebrating the “victories of the Palestinian resistance” and called on Muslim nations to support Palestine.

Within hours of the Hamas operation, senior advisors to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei hailed the attack and said it heralded the end of Israel.

• Khamenei’s military aide Yahya Rahim Safavi praised the assault, saying, “We support this operation.”
  
  
• In a congratulatory message addressed to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) leaders, Khamenei’s top foreign policy advisor Ali Akbar Velayati stated that the “victorious operation” heralded “the destruction of the Zionist regime.”

However, the Islamic Republic has been careful not to indicate direct involvement in the Hamas offensive—let alone claim responsibility for it.

• In a Twitter/X post on Oct. 8, Khamenei’s political advisor Ali Shamkhani—a former secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (2013-23)—described the “decisive operation” as “a real example of legitimate defense against a criminal regime.” Yet he also described the “Palestinian resistance” as an “independent movement.”

Coverage of the Hamas offensive dominated the front pages of Iranian newspapers on Oct. 8, with hardline outlets particularly elated.

• Javan, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), observed that the attack came days after Khamenei’s comments on Oct. 3 in which he warned Arab nations against normalizing relations with Israel, which he said was “a goner.” It added that the “coincidence” carried “lessons.”
  
  
• The hardline daily Vatan-e Emrooz published several pieces on the attack, highlighting “Israel’s apocalypse” and how the Hamas operations had “belittled” it.
  
  
• Reformist newspaper Etemad insisted that Hamas had delivered a “fatal blow” by targeting the “heart” of Israel.

Meanwhile, exiled critics of the Islamic Republic have alleged that it used recently unblocked Iranian assets to fund the Hamas offensive—with some going as far as calling for military action against Iran.

• US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller on Oct. 7 rejected the claim that the 6B USD in unfrozen Iranian assets was used to support the Oct. 7 attack, insisting that the funds can only be accessed for humanitarian purposes. Miller added that “not a penny” of the unblocked assets had been spent yet.
  
  
• On Twitter/X, some Iranians criticized their compatriots abroad for calling for war to topple the Islamic Republic.

The Joe Biden administration’s release of the frozen Iranian assets last month as part of a prisoner exchange helped the Iranian rial make slight gains against the US dollar.

• However, in the period between Oct. 6 and Oct. 8, the national currency lost more than 4% of its value against the greenback to hit 520,200 on the open market.
  
  
• Iranian media reports on Oct. 8 suggested that the Tehran Stock Exchange had also taken a hit.

The context/analysis: The Palestinian surprise attack comes amid efforts by the Biden administration to promote normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia—a development that Iran opposes.

• While it cannot be said for certain that upending Arab normalization with Israel was the primary goal of Hamas, observers believe that it will strongly impact such processes—if not entirely torpedo them.
  
  
• On Oct. 2, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said he hoped that the recent Tehran-Riyadh détente could deter Riyadh from following through with normalization talks with Tel Aviv.
  
  
• A day later, Iran’s supreme leader warned Arab states against “betting on the losing horse,” referring to Israel. Khamenei also said that normalizing relations with Israel was a “gamble” that was “destined to fail.”

Iran has been open about its support for Palestinian groups fighting Israel, including supplying weaponry.

• On the other hand, Iran believes that Israel is behind a series of attacks on its military and nuclear facilities as well as the targeted killing of Iranian nuclear scientists over the past 13 years.
  
  
• Israel maintains that Iran has been plotting to hurt Israelis and Jews. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant claimed on July 13 that Israel and its allies had thwarted "more than 50 attacks" plotted by Iran.

The future: With Israel’s declaration of war, the Israeli confrontation with Hamas appears set to escalate further—putting Iran’s Arab rivals, including Saudi Arabia, in a difficult position.

• Iranian officials and state-linked media will likely continue to celebrate attacks on Israeli targets. However, even if involved more closely than it may wish to admit, Tehran is not likely to claim any direct involvement.
  
  
• Tehran’s support for the Hamas operation, particularly amid tension with the west over the lifting of missile-related sanctions under the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, could result in further western sanctions.