Iran president urges Muslim states to sever all ties with 'Israel'

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
Today 13:06
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Ahead of a Qatar summit, Iran’s president calls for economic, cultural, and social measures to counter Israeli aggression and strengthen Muslim solidarity.

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Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during a memorial at the parliament in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, May 21, 2025 (AP)

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian urged Muslim nations to unite and sever all ties with “Israel”, denouncing its ongoing genocide in Gaza, allegedly backed by the United States and several European countries.

Speaking ahead of his departure for Qatar to attend an extraordinary summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League, Pezeshkian said the gathering, hosted by the Emir of Qatar, would address “Israel’s blatant aggression carried out in violation of all international laws.”

He stressed that “the Zionist regime recognizes no boundaries,” citing attacks on multiple nations, including Qatar, Lebanon, Iraq, Iran, and Yemen. “It does whatever it wants, unfortunately, with the support of the United States and [certain] European states,” Pezeshkian said.

Condemning the situation in Gaza, he denounced the Israeli genocide, where women, children, and the elderly are “condemned to death,” and criticized Washington for “legitimizing these crimes through military and logistical backing of an apartheid regime.”

Pezeshkian urged Islamic nations to adopt practical measures, economic, cultural, and social, to cut all ties with “Israel". He warned that if Muslims stand together, “the Zionist regime will not dare to attack our countries and trample on all international laws.”

Tuesday’s strike on Doha, where Hamas negotiators had been meeting to discuss a ceasefire in Gaza, has reverberated across the Arab and Muslim world. The attack prompted a rush of solidarity visits to Qatar, including Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and drew sharp condemnation from regional leaders. Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani called on the international community to “stop using double standards” and hold “Israel” accountable.

Emergency summit

In response, Qatar convened an emergency gathering of Arab and Islamic leaders, set for Monday in Doha. Officials said the summit would focus on drafting a resolution condemning the attack. Expected attendees include Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, while speculation continues over whether Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will participate.

Sheikh Mohammed warned that “Israel’s” “war of extermination” in Gaza would not succeed. “What is encouraging Israel to continue… is the silence, the inability of the international community to hold it accountable,” he added.

The strike has reportedly placed Washington in a difficult position: while Trump criticized “Israel", he also dispatched Secretary of State Marco Rubio to Tel Aviv in a show of support. Qatar, which hosts the largest US military base in the region, plays a central mediation role in the war on Gaza alongside the United States and Egypt. Sheikh Mohammad, who dined with Trump during a recent visit to Washington, has urged the US to move beyond statements of concern.

How the strike has 'undermined US credibility as a security partner'

US President Donald Trump urged restraint on Sunday following “Israel’s” airstrike on Qatar that killed several Hamas members and a Qatari officer.

“Qatar has been a very great ally. Israel and everyone else, we have to be careful. When we attack people we have to be careful,” Trump told reporters.

Regional voices are framing the crisis as larger than the "Israel"-Palestine struggle. Analysts say Gulf leaders are likely to press Washington for stronger security guarantees.

Elham Fakhro of Harvard’s Middle East Initiative noted that “Israel’s” strike “expose[d] the inadequacy of current assurances and have undermined US credibility as a security partner.” Karim Bitar, a lecturer at Sciences Po University in Paris, described the Doha summit as a “litmus test,” warning that citizens across the region are “sick and tired of the old-style communiques.”

Hamas has also placed high stakes on the meeting. Political bureau member Bassem Naim said the group hopes the summit will deliver “a decisive and unified Arab-Islamic position.”

OIC summit draft: Israeli attack on Qatar risks normalization

An updated draft resolution from the Arab-Islamic summit warned that "Israel’s" recent attack on Qatar and its broader policies threaten efforts to normalize ties with Arab nations.

According to the text, seen by Reuters, the summit “reaffirm[s] that the brutal Israeli attack on Qatar and the continuation of Israel's hostile acts, including genocide, ethnic cleansing, starvation, siege, and colonizing activities and expansion policies, threatens prospects of peace and coexistence in the region.”

The document adds that these actions jeopardize “everything that has been achieved on the path of normalizing ties with Israel, including current agreements and future ones.”

Arab, Islamic states unite over Israeli attack on Qatar, ignore Gaza

Arab and Islamic foreign ministers on Sunday declared that Qatar’s security is “an integral part of Arab and Islamic national security,” during a closed-door meeting in Doha ahead of an extraordinary Arab-Islamic summit set for Monday to address the Israeli assault on Qatar.

According to participants, the ministers stressed that the Israeli strike on Doha represented a breach of international law and a dangerous escalation threatening Arab, regional, and international stability.

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Majed al-Ansari, said the summit reflects broad Arab and Islamic solidarity with Doha and underscores the firm rejection of what he described as state terrorism practiced by the Israeli regime. He added that Monday’s emergency summit would discuss a draft statement on the Israeli aggression, prepared during Sunday’s ministerial session.

'Israel' faces growing isolation

The Israeli Channel 13 has lately described the situation facing the Israeli entity as a “political tsunami", saying the entity’s isolation has deepened following its failed attack in Qatar.

According to the broadcaster, countries that once considered themselves close to "Israel", such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordan, are moving closer to Iran and no longer view the Israeli occupation as a reliable ally.

The report added that a “diplomatic quagmire” is unfolding, noting that the impact of the Israeli occupation’s growing isolation at the United Nations has yet to be fully addressed.