Deputy FM Attends OIC Meeting on Israeli Plots

Iran’s deputy foreign minister for international and legal affairs participated in an extraordinary ministerial meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s Executive Committee on Israeli threats to annex parts of the occupied Palestinian territories.
Following a recent announcement by the Israeli regime about its plan to annex parts of the occupied territories, particularly in the West Bank, by next month and the US government’s support for such a hostile scheme, the OIC Executive Committee held a virtual extraordinary meeting at the level of member states’ foreign ministers on Wednesday to address the issue, Tasnim News Agency reported.
The meeting, held at the request of Palestinian National Authority and at the invitation of OIC Secretary-General Yousef bin Ahmad Al-Othaimeen, was attended by the foreign ministers and other political officials of OIC member states. 
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Mohsen Baharvand represented Iran in the meeting.
In his address to the virtual meeting, Baharvand reaffirmed Iran’s unwavering stance on defending the cause of Palestine and expounded on Iran’s views on the Zionist regime’s current threats, its main sponsor, namely the US, and on the most effective solution to solve such a persistent crisis of the Muslim world.
The Iranian diplomat strongly condemned the Israeli regime’s measure to declare Beit-ul-Moqaddas as its capital, its announcement of plans to annex parts of the occupied Palestinian and Arab territories and the US support for those measures.

Need for New Approach 

Baharvand also highlighted the ineffectiveness of the policy of negotiations with and appeasement to the Zionists, saying it is absolutely necessary for Muslims to think seriously about devising a new approach to the Palestinian issue to guarantee the inalienable rights of Palestinians to restore their legitimate rights.
“Now that it has been definitely proven that the US government has no goodwill and the Zionist regime is viciously and hypocritically playing with the principle of formation of the Palestinian government, the Islamic world is currently in dire need of ratification and implementation of a true pragmatic policy far beyond the current futile policy,” he said.
The Iranian deputy foreign minister underscored the international recognition of the right to self-determination, denounced the fierce obstructionism and opposition from the US and its cohorts to the issue of restoring the inalienable right of Palestinians, and said that is why the people of Palestine have now no option but to resort to resistance to fulfill the undeniable right to self-determination.
“Iran has repeatedly proposed the idea of approving a plan to hold a referendum with the participation of all Palestinians inside and outside Palestine with every religious and political background,” he said. 
“Now it’s time for the Organization of Islamic Cooperation member states to pass a resolution to call on the United Nations, as the chief international organization responsible for protecting world peace and security, to resolve the most long-running predicament in the contemporary world by holding a referendum in Palestine.”