Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian says holding a referendum in Palestine can serve as the “fundamental and political” solution to the Palestinian issue.
In a phone conversation on Monday, Amir-Abdollahian and Vatican’s Secretary for Relations with States Paul Archbishop Richard Gallagher discussed the of Israel’s relentless brutal attacks against the defenseless Palestinian people, which have been going on over the past 24 days, as well as ways to find a political solution to the critical situation.
“We believe that the Palestinian crisis should be resolved basically and a political solution to it is to hold a referendum with [the participation of] all the original inhabitants of Palestine, including the Christians, the Jews and the Muslims, in cooperation with the United Nations,” the top Iranian diplomat said.
Israel waged the bloody war on the Gaza Strip on October 7 after the Palestinian Hamas resistance movement launched the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the occupying entity.
Since the start of the war, the Israeli regime has been committing war crimes in Gaza, killing at least 8,306 Palestinians, including 3,457 children, and injuring over 22,000 others.
Pointing to his October 22 letter to Gallagher on the deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Gaza, Amir-Abdollahian hailed the stance adopted by the Vatican official and Pope Francis.
In his letter, Amir-Abdollahian said the crimes committed by the Israeli regime, including bombardment of al-Mamdani Hospital and a historical church in the Gaza Strip, where women and children had sheltered, “reveal another facet of the Zionist regime’s savage and brutal nature.”
The Iranian foreign minister also warned against the consequences of a possible expansion of war.
Gallagher, for his part, stressed the importance of delivering humanitarian aid to the war-stricken people in Gaza and finding a political solution to the conflicts with Israel in a bid to prevent the expansion of war.
Iran opposes killing of civilians in every part of world: Amir-Abdollahian
In another phone call with Maltese Minister for Foreign, Trade and European Affairs Ian Borg on Monday, Amir-Abdollahian said Iran opposes the killing of civilians, including women and children, in any part of the world.
“Unfortunately, there is no resemblance between the measures of the [Palestinian] liberation movement Hamas and constant attacks and war crimes perpetrated by the occupying regime of al-Quds (Israel),” he added.
The Maltese foreign minister, for his part, stressed the need to find an urgent political solution to the Palestinian issue in order to prevent the spread of war.
