Senior Jewish official in Iran, who called to eliminate Netanyahu, accused: "Israel is murdering children"

Hakham Younes Hamami Lalezar, one of the rabbis of the Jewish community in Iran, who last week called for the murder of US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was interviewed over the weekend by Iranian media and returned to attack Israel. Among other things, he accused it of killing children, claimed that many Jews around the world oppose Zionism, and mentioned that there are Haredi Jews in Israel who refuse to serve in the IDF. It is likely that these remarks do not reflect Hamami's personal position and that these are messages dictated by the regime in Tehran, as part of an attempt to present the Jews of Iran and Judaism as opposing the State of Israel.

In the interview, Hamami said that "religions are built on the basis of mercy, kindness, and divine grace." According to him:

"In addition to mercy, justice is also one of the fundamental pillars of divine instructions. From the perspective of the Torah, premeditated murder is considered one of the greatest sins, and the struggle against injustice gains meaning within the framework of justice."

He further said that "God created the world and man on the basis of mercy and grace, and wanted his servants to enjoy his kindness and grace." Hamami added that the principle of justice and fairness occupies a fundamental place, and that taking the life of an innocent person is considered one of the greatest sins. Referring to the story of Cain and Abel, he noted that "whoever takes a human life unjustly must be brought to trial in a fair process, including the death penalty."

Later in the interview, he addressed the position of the Jewish community in Iran regarding the "Zionist regime" and said that "the opposition to Zionism, which is a political movement and faction, existed from the very beginning among many Jews, and after the establishment of the Zionist regime, these objections expanded." Hamami, who a month ago swore allegiance to Mojtaba Khamenei, added:

"As Ayatollah Khomeini emphasized, Judaism, as a divine and monotheistic religion, is fundamentally different from Zionism, which is a political movement."

He further claimed that "free Jews around the world have condemned cruel actions, including the murder of children committed by the Zionist regime, and crimes against civilians. Even in the occupied territories, a group of Haredi Jews opposes the policies of the Zionist regime and are not willing to serve in the army."