Israel Praises Courage of Iranian Street Protesters

Street protests (Archive photo: Hosein Emrani/Unsplash)

Israeli leaders, journalists and social media users are praising Iranian protesters for taking on the Islamic regime. The media is closely following the latest developments, as Israelis continue to express their admiration for the people of Iran.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warmly praised the protesters in the weekly cabinet meeting. “I note the courage of the Iranian people who are again demonstrating in the streets against this regime,” the PM said Sunday. “They deserve freedom, liberty and the ability to live in security and peace, all of which the regime denies them.”

Netanyahu also slammed Iran for lying about the downing of the Ukrainian passenger plane in Tehran last week. “They deceived the entire world,” the PM charged. “This is completely contrary to how a civilized country should act, and we send our condolences to the victims of Iran’s deception and negligence.”

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Yisrael Katz also lauded the “brave protesters” who hit the streets after Tehran admitted that it shot down the plane. “Our heart is with the Iranian people,” Katz wrote.

Journalist Lauds Iranian ‘Heroes’

On social media, too, Israelis expressed their admiration for the courage displayed by Iranians. Arab affairs commentator Shimrit Meir posted a video of protesters with the caption “Tehran. This Evening. Heroes.”

Notably, many Israelis shared videos of the protests, including a widely circulating clip showing students marching around Israeli and US flags as not to step on them. Journalist Assaf Gibor wrote that this was “another amazing video” of young Iranians protesting against the regime.

The Israeli media has been covering events in Iran closely, and highlighting the growing dissent. On Friday, Weekly paper Makor Rishon interviewed several Israelis of Iranian descent who regularly speak with Iranians to gauge the mood in the country.

Elinor Rahimi, who runs a Facebook page that teaches Farsi, told the newspaper about the reactions she encountered. “The Iranians I speak with are overjoyed,” she said. “They express their love and sympathy for Trump, and also for Israel, and are truly happy that Soleimani was eliminated.”