The Ministry of Sports of the Islamic Republic has issued a directive urging Iranian sports federations to hold tournaments in support of Gaza.
The official letter, sent in October shortly after Hamas’ invasion of Israel on October 7, designated specific weeks for themed league games and other tournaments that condemned Israel and expressed solidarity with the people of Gaza. All federations have been instructed to do so.
In a letter received by Iran International, Arash Farhadian, the common secretary general of the federations, stressed that “the extended sports family of Iran must support the children of Gaza.”
Interestingly, although the Islamic Republic of Iran is a major supporter of Hamas, Lack of grassroots, mass expression of solidarity and Palestinians in Iran.
The Iranian regime has been in full propaganda mode since the October 7 attack on Israel, which killed 1,200 mostly civilians and took more than 240 hostages, consistently praising Hamas and It has criticized Israel for retaliating for the killing of a Hamas reporter. It will be 20,000.
In contrast, many Iranians express support for Israel on social media platforms. Moreover, certain groups of Iranians outside Iran not only withheld their support for the Palestinians, but also participated in pro-Hamas protests holding pro-Israel banners. The Israeli-Palestinian issue continues to lack genuine open discussion within Iran, and the regime openly promotes anti-Israel policies.