Iran's Jewish community joins global voices against Israel's war on Gaza

Amid a growing wave of support from Jewish communities around the world expressing their opposition to the ongoing war by Israel on Gaza, the Iranian Jewish society has demonstrated its support for the Palestinian people, with protests taking place in various cities throughout Iran.

Last week, Iranian Jewish people in cities such as Tehran, Shiraz, Kermanshah, Isfahan and Yazd joined together to raise their voices against Israel's war on Gaza.

On 30 October, one of the anti-war protests by the Iranian Jewish community unfolded in the Iranian capital, as Jewish people gathered at Tehran's Yousef Abad Synagogue to express their anger over Israel's ongoing killing of civilians in Gaza.

Rabbi Younes Hamami Lalehzar, the current religious leader of Iranian Jews, made a powerful statement during the protest, saying that the Zionist regime needed to reassess its approach in Palestine.

"If the Zionist regime comes to its senses, it must understand that their strategy in Palestine won't be successful in the long term," he stressed.

In the protest, members of the Iranian Jewish community held placards with slogans that highlighted their stance, such as "Do not commit crimes in the name of Judaism" and "We urge the international community to help the people of Gaza."

Homayoun Sameh Yah, a representative of the Iranian Jewish community in the Iranian parliament, expressed deep concern over how the Zionist regime has misused the name of Judaism.

"Unfortunately, the Zionists have abused the name of Judaism, attempting to buy credibility for themselves in the international community," he said, urging the world to recognise the distinction between the actions of a political regime and the beliefs of a religious community.

Similar sentiments echoed in the city of Isfahan, where Zion Mahgrefteh, the head of the Jewish community, read a statement denouncing Israel for its role in the Gaza conflict.

"We, the Jews of Iran, together with all the free Jews of the world, condemn the crimes of the Zionist regime and consider the governments that support this regime to be complicit in these crimes and the killing of the defenceless people of Palestine," read the statement.

"The behaviour of this brutal regime is in sharp contrast to the teachings of Judaism and the Holy Torah. We sympathise with the oppressed people of Gaza, who have been under siege by the Zionist regime for a long time and are now deprived of basic necessities such as water, food, and gas," the statement highlighted.

Iran is home to one of the most prominent Jewish communities in the Middle East, second in size only to Israel. Despite facing challenges, estimates suggest that around 10,000 to 25,000 Jewish individuals reside in Iran, where they maintain their cultural traditions and religious practices.