Raisi: the occupation has no right over the Palestinian territories
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Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi affirms that Iran and its people stand with Palestine, stressing that the Israeli occupation has no right over the Palestinian territories.
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In this photo released by Uzbekistan's President Press Office, Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi attends the Summit of the Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO) in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023. (AP)
Upon returning to Tehran from the Arab-Islamic summit in Saudi Arabia, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi stated that he aimed to convey "the voice of the Iranian people supporting Palestine and Gaza."
Raisi emphasized that since its revolution, Iran has maintained a "clear and straightforward policy" on the Palestinian cause. He added, "I consistently view the Zionist entity as false, usurping, and lacking identity."
He emphasized that even 75 years after the Nakba in Palestine, "the occupying entity does not have the right to Palestinian territories."
His statements come after the Arab Islamic Summit in Riyadh on Saturday. At the opening of the Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit in the Saudi capital Riyadh, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) affirmed the Kingdom's condemnation of the brutal war waged against Gaza, announcing that Saudi Arabia is working to protect civilians in Gaza and stop the aggression.
"The situation requires collective effort and effective action to end the tragic situation in Gaza," MBS said calling for "an immediate cessation of military operations and the opening of humanitarian corridors to the Strip."
President Raisi urged Muslim-majority nations to provide weaponry to Palestinians engaged in combat against the Israeli occupation forces.
"Muslim countries should arm the Palestinian people. Resistance is the only answer to Israeli violence. Countries around the world, including Muslim ones, should ensure the protection of the Palestinian people in the occupied territories," he said at a Joint Arab Islamic Extraordinary Summit in Riyadh.
Marking the first visit of a sitting Iranian president to Riyadh in over a decade, Raisi advocated for an end to trade and collaboration between Muslim nations and "Israel" and called for a boycott of Israeli-linked products.
"There is no other way but to resist Israel. We are kissing the hands of Hamas for its resistance to the Israeli regime," he added.
"Israel must immediately cease fighting in the Gaza Strip and withdraw its forces from there," he further said, adding that an international trial of Israelis and Americans must be formed to prosecute those responsible for the genocide in Gaza.
'US blocking ceasefire in Gaza'
Raisi said in Saudi Arabia, in a trip to take part in an emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), aimed at addressing the escalating conflict in the region, that the US is obstructing efforts for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
The Iranian president emphasized the urgent need for decisive action to halt the ongoing violence.
Raisi's visit to Saudi Arabia, his first since the restoration of diplomatic relations between the two nations in March, took on added significance as he addressed the media at Mehrabad airport in Tehran before his departure.
Wearing a traditional Palestinian koufiyyeh, he criticized the United States, stating, "If the crimes being committed nowadays in Gaza are not crimes against humanity, what is a fine example of such criminal acts then?"
Raisi accused the US of contradictory statements, as Washington declared a desire to prevent the war's expansion while actively directing the war machine in Gaza. He asserted that Washington was not only blocking a ceasefire but also exacerbating the aggression.
The Iranian president called for exposing the true nature of the United States to the world.
