Iran president raps some Arab, Muslim states for silence on Israel's Gaza crimes

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has censured certain Arab and Muslim countries for remaining tight-lipped on the Israeli regime’s latest crimes against Palestinian protesters seeking their right to repatriation.

Speaking at a government meeting on Wednesday, Rouhani expressed regret that certain regional Arab countries have kept silent on Israel’s atrocities, while certain Muslim states have simply chosen to turn a blind eye and some others have even stated that the regime “legitimately defended itself.”

Israeli military forces killed over 60 Palestinians and wounded over 2,700 more on Monday during anti-occupation protests near the fence separating Gaza from the occupied territories, at a time when Israeli and American officials were attending the inauguration of the new US embassy in the occupied Jerusalem al-Quds.

Rouhani argued that legitimate defense is only the right of a country or a nation that owns a land, but that the Zionist regime has no such right to occupied territory.

“On this land, 'legitimate defense by the Zionists' makes no sense," Rouhani said, noting that it is instead the Palestinian nation that is fighting for its land there.

“The Zionist regime and the United States assume that by exercising more pressure, they can deny the Palestinian nation its legitimate right or can separate the world’s Muslims from their [holy] land of al-Quds,” the president said. “They are making a great mistake."

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An eight-month Palestinian baby girl has been killed as a result of inhaling Israeli tear gas during clashes along the Gaza border.

The inauguration ceremony for the American embassy was purposely chosen to coincide with the anniversary of the day Israel was created after a deadly war against Arab nations in 1948.

“The Palestinian people have resisted [Israeli aggression] for 70 years, and will continue to do so,” Rouhani said.

Trump turned ‘Iranophobia into Trumpophobia’

President Rouhani also referred to the international support thrown behind Iran after US President Donald Trump chose for his country to leave the 2015 multi-lateral nuclear deal with Iran last Tuesday.

He said, “Today, Iranophobia, which they (the US) have been spreading to convince the world through false propaganda that Iran is [a source of] threat, has given its place to Trumpophobia.”

This is because all know that Iran is a country, which treads down the path of peace and acts in line with international regulations, he said, noting that “today, the US should come under pressure as a country going against its promises and acting in contravention of regulations.”

It is the United States, rather than Iran, that needs to be accused of wrongdoing, he said.

Rouhani stressed that the entire world, including the United Nations nuclear watchdog, has verified Iran’s commitment to its obligations under the deal, while all are insisting that Washington has acted unwisely and in violation of international rules.

Rouhani finally said some assume that pressure, sanctions and military threats can force the Iranian nation to surrender.

“But the nation’s steadfastness and resistance have proven this attitude and course of action to be wrong,” he added

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