IranianPresidentEbrahimRaisisaidonSaturday that the time had come foractionover the conflict inGazarather than talk as he headed to Saudi Arabia to attend a summitonthe war between Israel and Hamas militants.
“Gazaisnotan arena forwords. It should be foraction,”Raisisaid at Tehran airport before departing for the summit of Arab and Islamic nations in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh.
“Today, the unity of the Islamic countries is very important,” he added.
It is the first visit to Saudi Arabia by an Iranian head of state since Tehran and Riyadh ended years of hostility under a China-brokered deal in March.
“The summit will send a strong message to warmongers in the region and result in the cessation of war crimes in Palestine,” Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, who is accompanyingRaisi, was quoted assayingby the Padolat government website.
“Americasaysit doesn’t want an expansion of the war and has sent messages toIranand several countries [to this effect]. But these statements arenotconsistent with America’sactions,”Raisisaid in the televised comments at Tehran airport.
“The war machine inGazais in the hands of America, which is preventing a ceasefire inGazaand expanding the war. The world must see the true face of America,”Raisisaid.
(Published 11 November 2023, 07:53 IST)