Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Tuesday that the Palestinians will not stop at using stones in their uprising against Israel but will be forced to take up arms.
"I'm sure of it -- the Palestinian people cannot content themselves with stones," Khamenei said in a speech to thousands of people in the central city of Arak that was broadcast live on state radio.
"They will be obliged, to defend themselves and guarantee their survival, to take up firearms," he said. "It is up to Islamic and Arab countries to assume their responsibilities to aid the Palestinians."
Iran does not recognize the state of Israel and supports the Intifada, or uprising, against it. Khamenei has called for Islamic nations to pave the way for a holy war on Israel.
Tehran has also pushed for a referendum to include Muslims, Jews and Christians who lived in the former state of Palestine, and their families, that would determine the fate of any future Palestinian state -- TEHRAN (AFP)
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