Gaza War Could Expand across Region If It Doesn’t Stop, Iran’s FM Warns

Speaking in a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on Wednesday, Amirabdollahian referred to the war crimes of the Zionist regime against the defenseless people of Gaza, saying while the US government is directly involved in supporting and managing the cruel attacks by the Zionist regime and the commander of CENTCOM and the US military commanders are attending war operations room in Tel Aviv, Washington advises others to exercise restraint.

He added that the US, as a party to the war against Gaza, is in no position to advise others to exercise restraint.

The Iranian foreign minister stressed that the resistance groups in the region make decisions independently and if the war against the defenseless people of Gaza is not stopped immediately, the war risks expanding across the region any moment, and the responsibility for its consequences lies directly with the US government and the Zionist regime.

Amirabdollahian added that the “Palestinian resistance movements have told us that they do not face a shortage in munitions and other military hardware and they are ready for a long battle and are capable of powerfully confronting the Zionist regime,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s website reported.

He however said considering the focus of the Zionist regime's attacks on defenseless civilians and the full-scale siege of Gaza, it is necessary for Muslim countries to take immediate and effective action to end the war crimes of the Zionist regime, lift the siege of Gaza, and send in humanitarian aid.

Amirabdollahian maintained that in this regard, the Islamic Republic of Iran emphasizes the necessity of holding an urgent summit of the heads of state of the Islamic and Arab countries.

Elsewhere in his remarks, the Iranian top diplomat congratulated Erdogan on the National Day of Turkey and extended greetings from Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to Turkey’s president.

Referring to the recent telephone conversation between the two presidents, Amirabdollahian thanked Erdogan’s robust support and also the Turkish people’s impassioned backing for the oppressed people of Gaza.

Erdogan for his part extended his greetings to the Iranian president.

Pointing to his recent telephone conversation with Raisi regarding the developments in Palestine, Erdogan outlined Turkey’s view regarding the current crisis in Palestine, saying Ankara’s priority is to stop the attacks on Gaza, a ceasefire, lifting the Gaza siege, and sending in humanitarian aid.

He stressed that it is necessary to work hard to set up mechanisms that would ensure the security of the Palestinian people.

Amirabdollahian and Erdogan further spoke about bilateral issues including economic and trade ties between Iran and Turkey.