TEHRAN, Iran (AP) 06/03/2000

Iran's supreme leader today called on militant Palestinians to continue their struggle against Israel, saying the recent liberation of south Lebanon from Israeli occupation showed what was possible.

"It is possible that in several years time parts of occupied Palestine, and ultimately all of occupied Palestine, will be returned to the Palestinian people," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a speech broadcast live on Tehran radio.

"Today, there are some who see this as unlikely, but yesterday there were some who deemed the Lebanese phenomenon unlikely, even impossible. Yet, it happened," Khamenei said, speaking to tens of thousands of mourners marking the 11th anniversary of the death of revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

Khamenei attacked leaders of the Palestinian Authority and said they were "agents of America and Israel." Without referring to the Palestinian Authority by name, he said the Palestinian people should put their faith in the militants.

"If the Palestinians rely on the youth who have faith, their movement will achieve victory," Khamenei said.

Representatives of Palestinian groups in Tehran refused to comment on Khamenei's speech.

Last month Israel and its proxy South Lebanon Army pulled out of a strip in southern Lebanon that had been occupied since 1985 as a buffer against cross-border guerrilla attacks.

Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed leading guerrilla group in south Lebanon, has called the Israeli withdrawal "a major victory"

Iran does not recognize Israel's right to exist and opposes the Middle East peace process. Iran denies Israeli accusations that it arms and finances militant Palestinian groups, saying its support is purely moral.
(http://www.newsday.com/ap/international/ap218.htm)