RT.com
03 Oct 2023, 23:43 GMT+10
Tehran has called on the Arab world to avoid normalizing relations with the ?Zionist regime?
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has warned the Arab world against normalizing relations with Israel, predicting that the Jewish state will eventually "be eradicated."
"The definitive stance of the Islamic Republic is that the governments which make the gamble of normalization with the Zionist regime will lose," Khamenei said on Tuesday, according to Iranian state media.
"As the Europeans say, they are betting on a losing horse," the Ayatollah continued, calling Israel a "cancer" that will "God willing, be eradicated by the hands of the Palestinian people and the resistance forces throughout the region."
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters last week that a "basic framework" is in place for a US-brokered peace deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel. Such a deal would build on former US President Donald Trump's 'Abraham Accords', which saw Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan, and the United Arab Emirates agree to establish diplomatic and economic relations with Israel.
Iran and Saudi Arabia are the largest geopolitical rivals in the Middle East, and a normalization deal between Riyadh and West Jerusalem would be a major strategic blow to Tehran.
Prior to Kirby's announcement, Saudi Arabia had apparently been drifting away from American influence, with Riyadh reportedly working on a deal to sell oil to China in yuan and signing a Beijing-brokered normalization deal with Iran in March. Saudi Arabia and Iran also received invitations in August to join the BRICS group of emerging economies, an informal bloc led by Russia and China.
Speaking at a conference of Islamic scholars on Sunday, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi denounced the idea of rapprochement between Israel and the Muslim world.
"Normalizing relations with the Zionist regime is a reactionary and regressive move by any government in the Islamic world," he said. "The only option for all the fighters in the occupied land and the Islamic world is to resist and stand against the enemies," he continued, adding that Iran continues to support the "liberation" of Jerusalem from Israeli occupation.
"While the terror regime of Khamenei sows destruction and carnage, Israel is advancing progress and peace," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video response to Khamenei. "Just like Iran did not prevent us from achieving the Abraham Accords, Iran will also not prevent us from expanding further the circle of peace for the good of the citizens of Israel, peoples of the region and humanity as a whole."
(RT.com)
Get a daily dose of Hong Kong Herald news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Hong Kong Herald.
More InformationDHARAMSHALA, India: The Dalai Lama is set to address a significant three-day conference of Buddhist leaders this week, coinciding with...
BEIJING, China: China's national soccer team may struggle to stir excitement, but its humanoid robots are drawing cheers — and not...
]LONDON, U.K.: A World Health Organization (WHO) expert group investigating the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic released its final...
(New York) - China's government has erased Hong Kong's freedoms since imposing the draconian National Security Law on June 30, 2020,...
Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], July 5 (ANI): As Tibetans around the world prepare to celebrate the 90th birthday of the 14th...
HAIKOU, July 5 (Xinhua) -- Nestled in the coastal town of Boao in south China's Hainan Province, the Boao Lecheng International Medical...
FRANKLIN, Tennessee: Hundreds of thousands of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles are being recalled across the United States due to a potential...
REDMOND, Washington: Microsoft is the latest tech giant to announce significant job cuts, as the financial strain of building next-generation...
LONDON UK - U.S. stock markets were closed on Friday for Independence Day. Global Forex Markets Wrap Up Friday with Greeback Comeback...
SANTA CLARA, California: Nvidia came within a whisker of making financial history on July 3, briefly surpassing Apple's all-time market...
SACRAMENTO, California: California's multibillion-dollar farms are facing a growing crisis—not from drought or pests, but from a sudden...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump says the United States could soon reach a trade deal with India. He believes this deal would...