Iran Accuses Israel of ‘Genocide’ Against the Palestinians in Gaza

A large Palestinian flag on a building in Tehran (West Asian News Agency)
A large Palestinian flag on a building in Tehran (West Asian News Agency)
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Iran Accuses Israel of ‘Genocide’ Against the Palestinians in Gaza

A large Palestinian flag on a building in Tehran (West Asian News Agency)
A large Palestinian flag on a building in Tehran (West Asian News Agency)

Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi said on Thursday that the US administration must bear responsibility for killing women and children and destroying residential homes in occupied Palestine.

Speaking at Shiraz University during the opening ceremony of the academic year, Raisi announced that countries supporting the crimes of the Zionist entity, contrary to international standards and regulations, must be held accountable.

Raisi congratulated the victories of the resistance front, especially the Palestinian fighters, in the face of the Zionists' ruthless attack.

He accused Israel of dropping bombs on the defenseless people in Gaza because it couldn't defeat the Palestinian fighters, adding that it was a sign of the defeat of the Zionists.

During a phone call Wednesday, Raisi discussed with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad the recent developments in the Palestinian territories, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

The two presidents affirmed their position in support of the Palestinian people against Israeli crimes and their legitimate resistance to defend their just cause and restore their rights.

Assad stressed that Zionist policies are causing the bloodshed, emphasizing the necessity of rapid action at the Arab and Islamic levels to protect the Palestinians, particularly in the Gaza Strip, and stop the Israeli raids targeting children and women.

The Iranian President stressed that all Islamic and Arab countries, and all the free people of the world, must unite to stop the crimes of the Zionist entity against the oppressed Palestinian people, according to IRNA News Agency.

Raisi announced that Iran is trying to achieve Islamic and Arab cooperation through contact with the presidents and leaders of Islamic countries.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Foreign Minister, Faisal al-Mikdad, called on the Arabs to support the Palestinian people in various forms and means.

In a Syrian statement during the emergency meeting of the Arab League at the ministerial level in Cairo, Mikdad warned of a large-scale humanitarian catastrophe that may occur in the Gaza Strip, the region, and the world.

He accused the West of supporting "Zionist terrorist gangs and Israeli extremists," saying "Israel-backed terrorists" attacked the Military College in Homs last week, killing hundreds.

Furthermore, Iran's Foreign Minister Hussein Amirabdollahian said the Zionist occupation is the main reason for the crisis in the West Asian region.

Before leaving for Baghdad at the beginning of his Middle East tour, which will include Damascus and Beirut, Amirabdollahian said the world has witnessed in recent days the scenes that show the Israeli regime's attempt to massacre the defenseless people of Gaza and civilians.

"This entity has killed hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, and according to the available international statistics, 33,000 children have been martyred by the Zionists."

He warned that the Zionists want to massacre the people of Gaza, noting that the war is against all Palestinians, not just the people of Gaza.

"The continuation of war crimes by (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and Zionists against the civilians in Gaza, besieging, cutting off water and electricity, and denying entry of medicine and food, has created conditions where the Zionists are seeking a genocide of all people in Gaza," he said.



Trump to the Houthis: Real Pain Yet to Come

Houthi supporters attend a protest against US airstrikes on Houthi positions, on Al-Quds Day in Sanaa, Yemen, 28 March 2025. (EPA)
Houthi supporters attend a protest against US airstrikes on Houthi positions, on Al-Quds Day in Sanaa, Yemen, 28 March 2025. (EPA)
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Trump to the Houthis: Real Pain Yet to Come

Houthi supporters attend a protest against US airstrikes on Houthi positions, on Al-Quds Day in Sanaa, Yemen, 28 March 2025. (EPA)
Houthi supporters attend a protest against US airstrikes on Houthi positions, on Al-Quds Day in Sanaa, Yemen, 28 March 2025. (EPA)

Yemen's Houthi militias claimed Tuesday that they shot down another American MQ-9 Reaper drone, even as the US kept up its campaign of intense airstrikes targeting the group.

The reported shootdown over Yemen's contested Marib governate came as airstrikes hit around Sanaa, the country's Houthi-held capital, and Saada, a stronghold for the Houthis.

US President Donald Trump issued a new warning to both the Houthis and their main benefactor, Iran, describing the group as having “been decimated” by the campaign of strikes that began March 15.

“Many of their Fighters and Leaders are no longer with us,” Trump wrote on his social media website Truth Social. “We hit them every day and night — Harder and harder. Their capabilities that threaten Shipping and the Region are rapidly being destroyed. Our attacks will continue until they are no longer a threat to Freedom of Navigation.”

He added: “The choice for the Houthis is clear: Stop shooting at US ships, and we will stop shooting at you. Otherwise, we have only just begun, and the real pain is yet to come, for both the Houthis and their sponsors in Iran.”

The Houthis claimed to have felled a drone in Marib governorate, home to oil and gas fields still under the control of allies to Yemen’s legitimate government. Footage released on social media showed flames in the night, with a Yemeni man claiming a drone had been shot down.

Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a Houthi military spokesman, separately claimed downing the MQ-9 drone in a prerecorded video message.

Saree described the Houthis targeting the drone with “a suitable locally manufactured missile." The Houthis have surface-to-air missiles — such as the Iranian missile known as the 358 — capable of downing aircraft.

Iran denies arming the Houthis, though Tehran-manufactured weaponry has been found on the battlefield and in sea shipments heading to Yemen for the militants despite a United Nations arms embargo.

The US military acknowledged to The Associated Press being aware of reports of the downing of a Reaper, but declined to comment further.

General Atomics Reapers, which cost around $30 million apiece, can fly at altitudes over 40,000 feet (12,100 meters) and remain in the air for over 30 hours. The aircraft have been flown by both the US military and the CIA for years over Afghanistan, Iraq and now Yemen.

The Houthis claim they've shot down 20 MQ-9s over the country over the years, with 16 downed during the militants' campaign over the Israel-Hamas war. The US military hasn't acknowledged the total number of the drones it has lost there.

An Associated Press review has found the new American operation against the Houthis under Trump appears more extensive than those under former President Joe Biden, as the US moves from solely targeting launch sites to firing at ranking personnel as well as dropping bombs in cities.

The new campaign of airstrikes, which the Houthis now say have killed at least 61 people, started after the Houthis threatened to begin targeting “Israeli” ships again over Israel blocking aid entering the Gaza Strip. The militants have loosely defined what constitutes an Israeli ship, meaning many vessels could be targeted.

The Houthis targeted over 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two vessels and killing four sailors from November 2023 until January of this year. They also launched attacks targeting American warships, though none has been hit so far.