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Iran Deplores US Stance Against Tehran Conference on Palestine
Iran on Wednesday deplored the stance of the United States that called some participants in the ongoing Tehran international conference on Palestine "terrorist," the official IRNA news agency reported.
"Those fighting for liberation of their homeland could not be called terrorist. Not only Iran but also all other Muslim nations condemn the U.S. backing for Israeli state terrorism," Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi was quoted as saying by the agency.
The two-day conference, which opened on Tuesday, aims to " attract financial and spiritual support in defense of the Palestinians," Asefi said.
It has brought together some of Israel's worst enemies as well as delegates from more than 30 Muslim nations that had until now eschewed calls for confrontation with Israel.
U.S. State Department Spokesman Philip Reeker on Tuesday warned the nations attending the Tehran conference that they would be designated "terrorist" in the U.S. annual report on international " terrorism" due to be released next week.
Asefi noted that the Middle East crisis could not be resolved by one-sided support of Israel whose terrorist operations are clear to all.
"The Islamic republic of Iran does not need the US approval for its humanitarian and spiritual aid for the oppressed Palestinians and the Lebanese resistance movement," he said.
"Iran and other Muslim nations feel obliged to support the Palestinian combatants," he stressed, calling for a democratic solution to the conflict which enforces the very basic rights of the Palestinians.
According to organizers, the conference is expected to provide support for the Palestinian intifada, or uprising, against Israeli occupation, and make decision on practical steps to help the Palestinians succeed in restoring the rights of Palestinians.
The latest string of clashes between Israeli forces and the Palestinian protestors have so far killed 470 people, most of them Palestinians, since last September.
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