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Iran warns Israel on Gaza

January 2, 2009

(JTA) -- An Iranian leader warned Israel against a ground operation in Gaza.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said entering Gaza "by land will be the biggest mistake of the Zionist regime" and vowed Israel would be defeated in a ground attack, reported The Associated Press.

An influential cleric, Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, told worshipers in a sermon that an Israeli military defeat in Gaza would be a scandal for Israel's government and Palestinian resistance will only expand.

Tehran was one of four Middle East capitals in which demonstrations against Israel's bombing of Gaza were held Friday. About 6,000 people marched in the Iranian city, according to the AP, chanting "Death to Israel" and "Death to America" and burning Israeli flags. Protests were also held in Damascus, Cairo and Amman.

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