Iran's supreme leader vows not to give up on Palestinians

Iran's supreme leader was quoted Monday as saying during a meeting with a delegation from the Palestinian militant group Hamas that his country won't give up its stance in support of the Palestinians.

"Supporting Palestine is an ideological and religious matter," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said, according to state TV.

The Hamas delegation was headed by its deputy chief, Saleh al-Arouri. The delegation also met with Kamal Kharrazi, an adviser to Khamenei.

The official Iranian news agency IRNA said al-Arouri's visit to Tehran followed a visit by senior Iranian parliamentary official Hossein Amir-Abdollahian to Lebanon last week.

Iran backs both Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Iran and Hamas do not recognise Israel and have both called for its destruction.

Khamenei also denounced President Donald Trump's peace plan for the Mideast, calling it a dangerous conspiracy and urged followers not to allow it "to eliminate Palestinian identities by using money."