General

Iran Calls for Unified Muslim Response to Halt Israeli Actions.


RIYADH: Addressing an extraordinary summit in Riyadh, Iran’s Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref criticized the ineffectiveness of international mechanisms in stopping Israeli aggression in Gaza and Lebanon, calling for ‘collective action’ from Islamic and Arab leaders to achieve that goal.

According to Islamic Republic News Agency, leaders of more than 50 Islamic and Arab countries have gathered in the Saudi capital for the second emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab League to discuss the Israeli hostilities in Gaza and Lebanon.

Aref laid out three primary goals and urged Muslim and Arab leaders to work toward achieving them: halting the ongoing Israeli atrocities, implementing necessary measures to ensure they do not occur again, and providing adequate compensation for the damages inflicted on the people of Palestine and Lebanon.

The Iranian vice president underscored the moral obligation of all nations to confront what he described as one of the most severe injus
tices of the past century-the violent occupation of Palestinian territory and the ongoing displacement and genocide of its people.

He expressed deep concern over the ‘shameful catastrophe’ that has unfolded over the past year in occupied Palestine and more recently in Lebanon, attributing it not only to the brutality of a racist occupying entity but also to the ‘sense of impunity’ it enjoys in light of unconditional support from the United States and several other Western governments.

He pointed out that over 50,000 innocent people, mostly women and children, have been killed in Gaza, with similar atrocities now being committed in Lebanon, all made possible by political, financial, intelligence, and military backing from the US.

In an era where the mechanisms of the United Nations, including the Security Council, have proven ineffective in stopping the genocide of Palestinians and widespread killings in Lebanon, the responsibility of Islamic and Arab leaders has multiplied significantly, Aref asserted.