FM: US sought Iran’s help to contain Gaza war
Iran has received a flurry of messages from the US over the past weeks to help prevent a spillover of the Gaza war, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said.
When asked in an interview with Qatar-based Al Jazeera television network if there were communication channels with the US to ensure the prevention of the spread of the war, Amir-Abdollahian said his country has received messages through diplomatic channels, explicitly conveyed via the Swiss Embassy in Tehran, which safeguards US interests.
“The Americans consistently emphasized in their messages that they were not seeking to expand the scope of the conflict. We responded that they effectively escalated the war by aligning with the Israeli regime and extensively supplying weapons and financial support to Tel Aviv.
He also said the recent expansion of the conflict in the region in the past weeks is seen as a natural response by resistance forces against this unilateral action and the full military support of the US for Israeli attacks, resulting in the killing of Palestinian women and children.
“It is important that the aggression and crimes must halt and that the temporary cease-fire must become a permanent one. Otherwise, the region will face new conditions,” he said.
The four-day cease-fire in Gaza, which expired on Monday, was extended for two more days. It led to a cessation of Israel’s devastating war on Gaza as well as a swap of Palestinians incarcerated in Israeli jails and captives held by Hamas.
Elsewhere in his interview, Amir-Abdollahian said Iran had no proxy groups in the region, adding that resistance movements are operating to protect the interests of their own countries, preserve regional security, and defend the Arab-Muslim Ummah.
“Hamas is a reality that is rooted inside Palestine. Hamas is part of the Palestinian resistance. We believe that the future of Gaza will be decided by the Palestinian people and resistance.”
The Iranian foreign minister also described Lebanon’s Hezbollah as one of the most powerful resistance groups in the region.
The US and some Western countries sent 28 messages to Hezbollah in the six past weeks, urging the resistance movement to exercise restraint and prevent the expansion of the Gaza war, he said.