The Cultural Centre of the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Zimbabwe yesterday (29 November 2023) mounted a massive photographic exhibition at the venue where Palestine and its friends in Zimbabwe gathered to commemorate the International Palestinian solidarity Day.

The exhibition, curated by the Cultural Counsellor at the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Zimbabwe, Mr Hamid Bakhtiyar, told the painful story of the genocide in Palestine.

It was an exhibition that brought the people of Zimbabwe, Palestinians in Zimbabwe and all the friends of Palestine closer to the people of Palestine suffering and mourning at the hands of the apartheid and occupying state of Israel.

The carefully curated exhibition, the envy of many at the gathering, summed the collective feelings of all Palestinians and their friends.

All the people who spoke at the occasion paid special tribute to the Cultural Centre of the embassy of Iran for the thought and idea behind the exhibition, a collection of high-quality pictures telling the untold story of the crying Palestinian children and women failing to come to terms with the deadly bombs falling on them daily and taking away their precious lives.

Such was the impact of the exhibition that left many with eyes filled with tears as Zimbabweans still vividly remember the agony they had to also go through during the tormenting years of the country’s liberation struggle in the 1970’s.

And the statistics of the dead in Palestine showed that Israel is a criminal war monger. Fifteen thousand (15000) Palestinians have so far lost their lives, with 75 percent of the dead being children and women, while 7000 people are missing in the rubbles. Thirty-Eight thousand (38000) have been injured, while one and a half Million (1,5 million) people have so far been displaced in North and South Gaza.

These statistics were unveiled by the Palestinian Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Dr Tamer Almassri, who also revealed that Israel has destroyed most of the infrastructure in Gaza. He said churches have been targeted, while 87 percent of the mosques have been destroyed, together with about 67 percent of the homes and offices.

Ambassador Almassri said the number of children killed in Palestine so far outnumber all the children killed during the conflicts of the last 10 years. He said Israel, the United States of America and other Western countries were complicit in the genocide and war crimes being committed in Palestine.

ZANU (PF), the ruling party in Zimbabwe’s secretary for External Relations, Dr Simbarashe Mumbengegwi said Zimbabwe will continue to stand by the State of Palestine.

He said Zimbabwe is puzzled by the stance taken by the Western country of maintaining silence in the face of mounting genocide by Israel and its intended extermination of Gaza by Israel.

Dr Mumbengegwi said the Palestinians were prepared to endure pain in return of its everlasting freedom and independence.

The Cultural Counsellor, Mr Hamid Bakhtiyar, commented the high number of people who filled the venue in support of the Palestinian cause.

After the speeches, various poets and theatre groups performed for the audience which included diplomats, friends of Palestine, government and ZANU (PF) officials.