Large crowds gathered in Tehran and other Iranian cities on Friday, March 13, the last Friday of Ramadan, to mark Al-Quds Day, an annual event observed across the world to express solidarity with Palestinians and opposition to Israeli control of Jerusalem.
One person has been killed after multiple explosions were heard around the al-Quds Day march in the Iranian capital, where thousands were taking part in annual rallies held in solidarity with Palestinians, as United States-Israeli attacks across the nation continued for a 14th day of war.
A large midday explosion on Friday rocked a Tehran square filled with demonstrators who were there for the annual event, Iranian state television reported.
The cause of the blast in Ferdowsi Square was not immediately known, but it came shortly after Israel had threatened people to clear the area because it planned a strike.
State media outlet Press TV said one woman was killed from shrapnel as a result of a US-Israeli airstrike, without providing any other specifics.
At least 1,444 people have been killed and 18,551 injured by US-Israeli attacks on Iran since February 28, Iran’s Health Ministry said on Friday.
At the same time as he was speaking, Iranian leaders were in the streets of Iran… Iran continues to embarrass America.
Minister of Communications
Minister of Electricity
Minister of Construction and Roads
Minister of Foreign Affairs
The President
Minister of Industry
Minister… https://t.co/E7EpiCY73L pic.twitter.com/PB1U3wq58H— Ahmed Hassan 🇾🇪 أحمد حسن زيد (@Ahmed_hassan_za) March 13, 2026
Meanwhile, Al Jazeera Arabic reported an air strike metres away from a gathering of protesters in Tehran. It was not clear where exactly the attack took place or whether it led to any casualties.
Crowds turned out in Tehran and other cities, despite ongoing US and Israeli strikes in the region during the commemoration, state media reported.
Al-Quds Day (or, simply, “Quds Day”) is an annual, international day to express support for Palestine and oppose the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories. Al-Quds is the Arabic name for Jerusalem.
Iranian president Pezeshkian and foreign minister Aragachi walks the streets of Iran being greeted by men and women.
No revolution. No regime change. You were lied to. pic.twitter.com/QVcNnpuJPM
— Syrian Girl (@Partisangirl) March 13, 2026
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian was seen at the rally in Tehran, as well as Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.
Larijani claimed Israel was dropping bombs on Quds Day out of fear, and that US President Donald Trump was unaware that Iranians were a strong, aware, and determined people.
The minister of roads, as well as the minister for sports and youth, were also seen among those demonstrating, Tasnim news agency reported.
Demonstrators on Friday chanted “Death to Israel” and “Death to America” while carrying Iranian flags and images of Palestinian fighters, voicing support for groups battling the US and Israel.
Our Al Jazeera Arabic colleagues in Tehran saw demonstrators raising banners bearing political and religious slogans expressing solidarity with Jerusalem and the Palestinian people.
Al Jazeera’s Tohid Asadi, reporting from Tehran, said while the event was meant “to express solidarity” with the Palestinian people, it was also a moment to express their anger at the ongoing attacks in the country.
Many senior Iranian officials appeared publicly today alongside large Qods Day crowds in Tehran — including President Pezeshkian, judiciary chief Mohseni Ejei, and senior security official Ali Larijani — projecting confidence, defiance, and resilience. pic.twitter.com/37VZX0v62F
— Sina Toossi (@SinaToossi) March 13, 2026
“It is a twofold message … Emotions are running high among the people who are joining this demonstration as the country is seeing attacks from the Americans and Israelis,” he said.
“Over the past nine months, this is the second time that the country is being attacked by the Israelis. This time … we are dealing with an ongoing war, the scope of which is unprecedented, not comparable at all with the previous war.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian called on the population to participate despite the war. On Thursday, he posted on X urging his fellow Iranians to “disappoint Iran’s enemies by taking to the streets in greater numbers than ever before”.
Iran has marked al-Quds Day on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan since its 1979 Islamic Revolution, after the occasion was declared by the republic’s founder and first Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
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