Deputy Commander of the IRGC Threatens Kurdistan Region and Israel on Quds Day

Following the concerns expressed by the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq regarding shelling in border areas with Iran, the Deputy Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned officials in this region that the Islamic Republic would "decisively and without any consideration destroy any point that is the origin of threats against the regime." According to the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA), Hossein Salami, the Deputy Commander of the IRGC, stated on Friday, July 2, "We warn the mercenary regimes in the region and the political officials of northern Iraq to adhere to their commitments, as we will decisively destroy any point that is the origin of threats against our regime without any consideration." After clashes between the IRGC and the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan in recent weeks, some media reported that on Sunday, July 6, border areas between the "Kurdistan Region of Iraq and Iranian Kurdistan," including areas such as "Haji Omran," "Barbazin," "Doli Alan," "Konerah," and "Seyedkan," were shelled by the IRGC. Mohammad Pakpour, the Commander of the IRGC Ground Forces, also emphasized that the bases of armed groups opposed to the Islamic Republic, which he referred to as "armed terrorists," would be targeted "in any location." Nechirvan Barzani, the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, expressed his "deep concern" over this action by the Islamic Republic on Wednesday. "Tens of thousands of long-range missiles from various parts of the Islamic world are ready to annihilate Israel," the Deputy Commander of the IRGC stated during the Quds Day rally in Tehran on Friday. He further announced that "more than one hundred thousand missiles" in Lebanon are ready to "erase Israel from the map of the world with one order." According to Fars News Agency, he added, "Tens of thousands of long-range missiles in various parts of Islam are just waiting for the order to erase Israel from the political geography of the world with the pull of a trigger." Mr. Salami emphasized that the "capacity to reclaim the land of Palestine" from Israel is "available," and "if this regime makes a mistake, it is almost certain that all the land occupied by this regime will be occupied by Muslim fighters who are ready to attack." Ahmad Khatami, the Friday Prayer Leader of Tehran, also stated at this event that despite the efforts of Takfiris, "we will not allow the Palestinian cause to be sidelined." Iranian officials refer to ISIS and al-Qaeda as "Takfiri groups" and claim that the U.S. and Western countries, including the UK, created ISIS to counter the power of the Islamic Republic. Meanwhile, Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, stated that "today, in the shadow of the division in the Islamic world, the presence of Takfiri and terrorist groups in the region and the line of compromise, we have strayed from the path of the Palestinian liberation cause." He added, "To achieve this cause, we have no choice but to unite Muslims and follow the line of resistance and jihad against terrorist and Takfiri groups." The Quds Day rally is held on the last Friday of Ramadan in Iran. The Coordination Council for Islamic Propaganda, the organizing body of this rally under the supervision of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, in its statement this year, referred to the United States and Israel, as well as the governments of Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, in harsh terms. Outside Iran, while political currents close to the Islamic Republic hold Quds Day rallies every year, Hezbollah in Lebanon unexpectedly announced on Thursday that due to security concerns, it would cancel the Quds Day ceremony in southern Beirut. This is the first time Hezbollah has not held the Quds Day ceremony. In recent weeks, especially following suicide attacks in the village of "Al-Qaa" near the Syrian border that resulted in the deaths of five people, the Lebanese government has increased its security alert due to the potential threat of terrorism.