Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, March 16, 2026, sent video greetings to the people of Iran ahead of Nowruz, the Persian New Year, offering wishes for the Festival of Lights even as his country presses its war on Iran. In the message, Netanyahu addressed Iranians directly and framed the holiday wish within the current geopolitical tensions between the two states.
“To the brave people of Iran, I wish you, as I do every year, a happy holiday season, beginning with the Festival of lights,” Netanyahu said, referencing Chaharshanbe Suri, the ancient Iranian fire-and-light festival observed on Wednesday, March 18, 2026. He added that the festival “signifies the age-old belief of the Iranian people that light will triumph over darkness, that good will triumph over evil,” speaking in English while the video carried Farsi subtitles.
Pointing to the wider political moment, Netanyahu said, “This year this holiday has special meaning… I take this opportunity to wish you a happy Nowruz — a year of freedom. A new beginning of hope to all of you,” referring to Nowruz, which falls on Friday, March 20, 2026. The remarks were published via the Prime Minister’s official social channel on March 16.
The message continues a pattern: in recent years Netanyahu has frequently recorded video appeals to Iranians, particularly to opponents of the Islamic Republic’s clerical leadership. On March 7, during a televised press conference, he told Iranians that “the moment of truth is approaching” and urged them to free themselves from “the yoke of tyranny” so that Israel and Iran might “return to be brave friends.”
Original Source: https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/iran-war-amid-death-rumours-benjamin-netanyahus-message-for-brave-people-of-iran-11225196#publisher=newsstand
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Publish Date: 2026-03-17 03:15:00
