Iranian Officials: Iran Transferred Fajr-5 Missiles To Gaza, Which Were Fired At Israel

Iranian officials recently publicly acknowledged that Iran had sent military aid to Palestinians in Gaza, specifically Fajr-5 missiles with a range of up to 80 km, and expressed satisfaction with the damage they had caused to Israel during Operation Pillar of Defense in November 2012.

Following are statements by Iranian and Palestinian Islamic Jihad officials confirming the transfer of Fajr-5 missiles from Iran to Gaza:

Iranian Officials: Iran Transferred Fajr Missiles To The Palestinians

Khamenei Advisor Velayati: Our Fajr-5 Sent Three Million Israelis To Bomb Shelters

In an April 16, 2013 speech to public officials in Khuzestan, southern Iran, Ali Akbar Velayati, advisor to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei for international affairs, said: "[Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader] Ramadan 'Abdallah [Shalah] said to me: 'We want to strike Tel Aviv with Fajr-5 missiles,' [but] one of the revolutionaries in North Africa said: 'You can strike any place you want but not Tel Aviv.' But we did it, and three million Zionists ran to bomb shelters in fear."[1]

In a February 8 speech in Qom, Velayati made similar statements: "We saw how the Palestinians managed to drag three million Israelis to bomb shelters and to target Tel Aviv with the extremely simple [Fajr] missiles given to them by Iran."[2]

Khamenei's Representative In The IRGC: Iran Gave Fajr-5 Missiles To The Palestinians

In a February 11, 2013 speech marking Revolution Day, in Kermanshah, western Iran, Ali Saeedi, Khamenei's representative in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), stated: "What solved Gaza's problem are the Fajr-5 missiles that Iran gave as a gift [to the Palestinians]."[iii]

Majlis Member: Iran Sent 50,000 Missiles To Gaza

At a November 2012 Basij conference in Mashhad, Majlis member Javad Karimi, a former IRGC official, said: "We sent the besieged Gaza 50,000 missiles and thousands of anti-tank rockets, because if we do not defend [Gaza], we will suffer casualties in the streets of Mashhad."[4] He added: "Launching Fajr-5 missiles at the center of Tel Aviv attests to a major victory in the conflict over Palestine in favor of the Iranian nation, and allowed Iran to once again prove its strength to the world. These 50,000 Fajr missiles show the crucial role Iran played in Gaza's victory."[5]

Kayhan: The Resistance's Launch Of Fajr-5 Missiles Proves That Iran Arms Shi'ites As Well As Sunnis

On November 17, 2012, the daily Kayhan, which is close to Khamenei, claimed: "The launch of missiles like the Fajr-5 [at Israel] by 'the Islamic resistance' [in Gaza] shows that Iran supports the Islamic resistance front and completely disregards the artificial conflict between Shi'ites and Sunnis."[6]

Majlis Official: We Provided The Palestinians With The Weapons They Required

At an April 21, 2013 meeting in Damascus with representatives from the 14 Palestinian resistance factions, Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Chairman Ala Al-Din Boroujerdi said: "We were unafraid to say that we provided the Palestinian factions [in Gaza] with the weapons they required."[7]

A report by the Iranian broadcast authority (IRIB) noted specifically that Boroujerdi was referring to Fajr-5 missiles.[8]

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Launch of a Fajr-5 missile[9]

Iranian Website: Reports On Supplying Fajr-5 To The Palestinians Could Spell Trouble For Regime

The Iranian website Asr-e Iran criticized Iranian media reports that Iran supplied Hamas with Fajr-5 missiles. It said that these reports could spell legal and political trouble for the regime and could be used as evidence in lawsuits against Hamas, Lebanon, and Iran in Western courts: "There are already dozens of cases against Iran in courts in the U.S., Europe, and other Western countries, some of which are at the stage of delivering a verdict and of sentencing Iran to pay tens and sometimes even hundreds of millions of dollars in damages to survivors of incidents like a bombings in Palestine and Lebanon. In most cases, the excuse for these verdicts is Iran's alliance with, support for, and arming of organizations such as Hizbullah in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine. Therefore, even if Iran did indeed give Fajr-5 missiles to Hamas, under current circumstances when the regime is not confirming this, there is no need for media attention..."[10]

Islamic Jihad Officials: The Fajr-3 and Fajr-5 Missiles Sent To Us From Iran Have Changed The Equation

Islamic Jihad leaders also publicly acknowledged that Iran was supplying missiles and ammunition to Gaza:

Islamic Jihad Leader Ramadan Shalah: Iran Is Our Main Weapons Supplier

Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Ramadan Shalah said that despite differences of opinion between Islamic Jihad Iran in the matter of the Syrian crisis, Iran is providing military and financial aid to his organization: "Even if we have disagreements with Iran regarding the situation in Syria... With regard to Palestine, we are in complete agreement with Iran. Iran has given us all the aid and all the support. The weapons that are fighting the Israeli aggression and arrogance in Palestine come mainly from Iran, as the entire world knows. This is no secret. These are either Iranian weapons or weapons financed by Iran."[11]

Islamic Jihad Deputy Leader Ziyad Nakhala: Our Weapons, And Hamas's, Are Iranian

Asked in a television interview "Are you firing the Fajr-3 and Fajr-5 missiles? Do you have these missiles?" Islamic Jihad deputy leader Ziyad Nakhala replied: "We received these missiles from our allies and brothers in the Islamic Republic. They have generally given us these missiles, exerting great effort. These missiles have changed the equation in this conflict."[12]

In a different interview, on Al-Manar TV, Nakhala said: "The weapons of the resistance, and even Hamas's weapons, are Iranian weapons, from the first bullet to the [last] missile. Even the manufacture [of these weapons] is local to Iran."[13]

Islamic Jihad Official Khaled Al-Batsh: Our Fajr-3 And Fajr-5 Missiles – 100% Iranian

Asked in an Al-Mayadeen TV interview, "Are the Fajr-5 missiles produced locally or brought from outside Palestinian lands?" Islamic Jihad official Khaled Al-Batsh answered: "These missiles are 100% Iranian made, and are part of the legitimate aid that the Islamic Republic provides to the Palestinian people. This is well known and was announced in the media."[14]