Iran: Countering Israel core of foreign policy; no change in Palestine support

Iran says it will make no changes in its foreign policy regarding its unwavering support for Palestine and confronting the Israeli regime.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani made the remarks at his weekly press conference in Tehran on Monday, as he once again expressed his condolences over the martyrdom of President Ebrahim Raeisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, and six of their companions in a helicopter crash on May 19.

“Supporting Palestine and confronting the Zionist regime are among the main principles of Iran’s foreign policy, derived from the Constitution and the guidelines of Leader [of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei],” he said.

Despite the tragic incident of the death of President Raeisi and his entourage, Iran’s support for Palestine will not be stopped or disrupted, he added.

He emphasized that Iran will continue its legal, diplomatic and international support for Palestine as a moral responsibility.

Raeisi, Amir-Abdollahian and six others were killed on May 19, when their helicopter crashed in foggy weather in the mountains near the northwestern border with Azerbaijan. Their bodies were found the following day after a massive search operation.

The pair had defended the Palestinians’ rights in regional and international meetings and appreciated their resilience against the Israeli occupation and its criminal war in the Gaza Strip over the past seven months.

Kan’ani renewed the international community’s “legal and moral” responsibility vis-à-vis the Israeli regime’s crimes in Gaza.

He said the Zionist regime is violating international conventions, and the International Court of Justice has ordered an immediate end to the regime’s military aggression on Gaza’s southern city of Rafah.

“There are all the necessary legal and international grounds to end the war, but it is obvious that what has happened [in Gaza] over the recent months was the outcome of the support of certain countries, especially the United States for the Zionist regime,” he added.

On May 24, the International Court of Justice, the top United Nations court, said Israel must immediately halt its military offensive and any other action in the Rafah Governorate that may inflict on the Palestinian group in Gaza conditions of life that could bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part.

As the biggest sponsor of the Israeli regime, the Iranian spokesman said, the US government is not committed to the decisions by important legal and international bodies.

He urged world nations to constantly ask their governments to play a role in putting an end to Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip.

At least 35,984 Palestinians, mostly children and women, have been killed and more than 80,600 others wounded in the war that Israel began on October 7, 2023, following a retaliatory operation by the Palestinian territory’s resistance movements.

The brutal military onslaught enjoys unreserved military and political support on the part of the Israeli regime’s Western allies, including the United States and France.

‘Enhanced ties with neighbors among achievements of Raeisi admin’

The Iranian spokesperson further noted that clearance of misunderstandings and development of relations with neighbors, especially the Persian Gulf littoral states, were among the achievements of the strategic policy of the late President Raeisi’s administration.

Kan’ani said he is aware of the reports about Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa’s remarks regarding Manama’s willingness to resume diplomatic ties with Iran.

He hailed the Bahraini king’s message of condolences and the presence of the Arab country’s foreign minister in funeral processions held for President Raeisi and his companions.

‘Iran attaches importance to Africa’

Kan’ani pointed to the significance of promoting ties with African countries and said the Iranian government attaches importance to Africa as the continent of opportunities.

He added that the recent tragic incident in Iran will not disrupt further expansion of relations with the African states.

‘No change in Iran’s indirect talks to remove sanctions’

The diplomat said Iran has made no change in its approach to indirect and mediated talks aimed at removing sanctions and returning all parties to their commitments as per the 2015 nuclear agreement.

“We will continue our efforts within the same framework,” Kan’ani added.

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