Palestinian Islamic Movement: Iran is Committing Massacres in Syria Under the Name of Jerusalem

Sheikh Raed Salah, leader of the Palestinian Islamic Movement, condemned the Islamic Republic of Iran for 'exploiting' the name of Jerusalem for the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards, accusing Iran of committing 'massacres' in Syria. Sheikh Raed Salah wrote on his Facebook, 'The criminals of the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards are involved in the slaughter of the Muslim nation,' but this name is 'innocent' of the name Jerusalem. Jerusalem refers to Al-Quds and Al-Aqsa Mosque, the first Qibla of Muslims, which is under Israeli control. According to the Jerusalem Post, Sheikh Salah's post against Iran was published on Monday this week, the 20th of Ordibehesht; the Islamic Republic of Iran or the Quds Force has not responded to this accusation. Sheikh Salah's accusation of Iranian involvement in the 'massacre of brothers in Syria, especially in Aleppo,' continues the dissatisfaction of Palestinian figures regarding recent events in Aleppo province, Syria. In the recent heavy battles in Aleppo, between the army loyal to Bashar al-Assad, aided by its regional allies, against a coalition of opposition forces led by the Nusra Front, hundreds of Syrians were killed in areas besieged by either the Syrian army or militants. Ezzat al-Rashq, a member of Hamas's political bureau, also condemned the recent airstrikes in Aleppo by the Syrian army on his Facebook on the 12th of Ordibehesht. Sheikh Salah began his 9-month prison term on Sunday, the 19th of Ordibehesht, in Ramon prison in the Negev desert in southern Israel, but continues to publish content from his social media accounts from within prison. Last year, Israel declared the Palestinian Islamic Movement 'illegal' and sentenced Sheikh Salah to 9 months in prison for 'inciting violence' regarding the 'danger to Al-Aqsa Mosque' in his past activities. According to the Jerusalem Post, this week, with the start of Sheikh Salah's imprisonment, the hashtag 'We are all Raed Salah' was launched by social media activists in solidarity with him, supported by Arabs from the 1948 territories, Palestinians, and the Arab and Islamic world. Sheikh Salah has previously served three terms as the mayor of the city of Umm al-Fahm in the 1948 territories. With the start of his imprisonment, Sheikh Salah stated that Palestinians in the occupied 1948 territories, as well as those in Gaza and the West Bank, 'will soon celebrate the liberation of Jerusalem at Al-Aqsa.' Sheikh Salah has recently taken a stance against Iranian interventions in Syria, while Israel had previously tried him 14 years ago on charges of connections with Iran and fundraising for Hamas, imprisoning him from 2003 to 2005.