Anti-Israel stance proves need to recognize Jewish state

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that the vociferous anti-Israel comments made by Iranian Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's earlier in the day "strengthen the steadfastness of my government on the security needs of Israel's citizens and our demand that Israel be recognized as a Jewish state", Channel 10 reported.

Netanyahu also said that Israel would continue to seek peace while ensuring that conditions are in place to provide for the security of Israelis for generations to come.

Earlier on Saturday, Khamenei, speaking at an international conference in Tehran, called Israel a "cancerous tumor" that should be removed.

Khamenei was addressing the "5th International Conference in Support of the Palestinian Intifada", which was attended by senior Palestinian militants, including Hamas leader Khaled Meshal.

Khamenei assailed a two state solution for Israel and the Palestinians, saying the Palestinian bid for statehood at the United Nations is doomed to fail.

Khamenei said Palestinians should not limit themselves to seeking a country based on the pre-1967 borders because "all land belongs to Palestinians."

"Our claim is freedom of Palestine, not part of Palestine. Any plan that partitions Palestine is totally rejected," Khamenei said.

"Palestine spans from the river (Jordan) to the sea (Mediterranean), nothing less."

Meshal told the conference that "resistance" was the only option left for the Palestinians.

"Palestinians must resort to resistance no matter how costly it is, until Palestine is free and Israel is destroyed," Meshal said.

Source: Haaretz and The Associated Press