Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in Iraq and Lebanon on Friday to protest against Israel’s ongoing military offensive on Iran.
In Beirut, hundreds of Hezbollah supporters marched through the southern Dahieh suburb following Friday Muslim prayers, expressing solidarity with Iran and denouncing both Israel and the United States.
The demonstration, which began outside the al-Qaeem Mosque, saw crowds chanting anti-Israel and anti-American slogans, as well as expressing support for Iran’s leadership. Protesters waved Iranian, Palestinian, and Hezbollah flags, shouting slogans such as “America is the great Satan,” while loudspeakers played a recorded speech by the late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in September.
Addressing the rally, Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Ammar condemned threats directed at Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“No one can threaten the leaders of Iran,” he declared.
The protest coincided with reports of Israeli drones flying at low altitudes over Beirut and surrounding areas.
In Iraq, tens of thousands of people responded to a call by influential Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, staging protests in Baghdad and across several provinces, including the holy cities of Karbala and Najaf.
Amid intense heat, clerics led chants denouncing Israel’s attacks on Iran and demanded that the Iraqi government block any use of Iraqi airspace for launching such strikes.
Witnesses reported widespread public outrage and calls for stronger regional solidarity with Iran.
(dpa/NAN)