Iran FM meets Iraqi security chief in Baghdad, Palestine high on agenda

Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hossein Amirabdollahian met and talked with Qasim al-Araji, the Iraqi National Security Advisor upon his arrival in Baghdad. The meeting took place at the Iraqi National Security Council.

Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hossein Amirabdollahian met and talked with Qasim al-Araji, the Iraqi National Security Advisor upon his arrival in Baghdad. The meeting took place at the Iraqi National Security Council.

Expressing gratitude to the Iraqi brothers for the good reception, Amirabdollahian expressed his satisfaction with the meeting and added that Iran and Iraq have always consulted each other on important regional issues, stressing that such consultations will continue.

Emphasizing on the important role of Iraq in the region, the top Iranian diplomat said: “Today, Iraq's role regarding Palestine is also in the attention of everyone. We are aware of your good positions in supporting Palestine.”

Amirabdollahian noted that the positions of the Islamic Republic vis-à-vis Palestine are clear, and added: “We have always supported the inalienable rights of the Palestinians, but what happened in the Al-Aqsa storm operation was a completely Palestinian action, which was a spontaneous move in response to the continuous and provocative crimes committed by the Zionists against the Palestinians and the repeated attack on the Al-Aqsa Mosque.”

He emphasized that the incidents taking place in Gaza by the Zionist regime constitutes clear examples of war crimes, and that the failure to stop them can affect the entire region.

The Iranian foreign minister added that the sending of weapons by the United States to Israel in a situation where the Zionist regime is massacring the people of Palestine and Gaza is taking place before the eyes of the world.

Amirabdollahian emphasized that if Israel does not stop its attacks on the civilians of Gaza, the region will face new conditions. He said: “They [Israeli] cannot put Gaza under a complete siege and bombard civilians and commit war crimes and expect no reaction to these crimes.”

The top Iranian diplomat added that Tehran is pursuing an emergency meeting of foreign ministers of the Islamic countries, and said: “We are ready to host this meeting in Tehran. We expect that Iraq will also try to convince Islamic countries to hold this meeting.”

Amirabdollahian also hailed the efforts of the Iraqi government and al-Araji to implement the Tehran-Baghdad security agreement and emphasized the necessity of its full implementation. He added that Iran is confident in Iraq’s efforts, adding that Baghdad is the guarantor of its implementation.

The Iraqi national security advisor, for his part, welcomed the top Iranian diplomat to Iraq and said: “Palestine is an important and fundamental issue from the viewpoints of Iraq and Iran, and that the positions of the Iraqi government and Ayatollah Sistani are the same in this regard.”

Al-Araji added that millions of people will take to the streets of Baghdad on Friday to express their support for Palestine.

The Iraqi national security advisor said that the events in Gaza constitute a crime against women and children, stressing that he deems them completely unacceptable.

He added: Stopping the killings should be considered and the rights of the Palestinian people should be taken into account.”

Al-Araji said that coordinating and integrating the positions of Iran, Iraq and Islamic countries is a very important issue.

He congratulated the expansion of Iran's relations with many countries in the region and the world and considered it a sign of Tehran’s wisdom and tactfulness.

He described the implementation of the security agreement between Iran and Iraq and the expulsion of armed groups as a great success that had not been done in many years.

Al-Araji added that the government and all Iraqi movements adhere to this agreement and said: “We consider it to be in the interest of both countries.”

He added that the Iraqi government follows the implementation of the security agreement at the highest level, noting that Baghdad is serious about its full implementation.