DUBAI (Reuters) – Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in Qatar on Wednesday for bilateral talks and a summit at which he said he hopes to enlist Asian countries’ help in preventing what he called “Israeli crimes” in the Middle East.
Starting his first trip to Qatar as president, Pezeshkian criticised Israel over the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. Iran blames Israel for Haniyeh’s assassination on July 31. Israel has neither claimed nor denied responsibility for his death.
Since then, Israel has assassinated the leader of the Iran-backed Hezbollah group in Lebanon, Hassan Nasrallah, and sent troops into southern Lebanon on what it called a limited operation. Iran responded by firing a barrage of missiles at Israel on Tuesday.
“We also want security and peace. It was Israel that assassinated Haniyeh in Tehran,” Pezeshkian was quoted saying on his arrival in Qatar by Iran’s Student News Network.
“Europeans and the U.S. said if we do not act, there will be a peace in Gaza in one week. We waited for them to have peace but they increased their killing”.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose country faces conflicts against both Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, has said Israel will respond to Iran’s missile attack.
“If the Zionist regime (Israel) does not stop its crimes, it will face harsher reactions,” Iranian state media quoted Pezeshkian as saying as he left for Qatar.
Pezeshkian told state television that the first goal in Doha was to discuss bilateral ties and sign agreements with the Qatari government. He will also attend a summit of the Asia Cooperation Dialogue.
“The second goal is to discuss how Asian countries can prevent Israeli crimes in the region…and prevent enemies from causing uproar in the Middle East,” Pezeshkian said.
Qatar has been one of the mediators working on a ceasefire deal in Gaza, although talks have stalled.
(Reporting by Elwely Elwelly and Dubai Newsroom; Editing by Michael Georgy, Angus MacSwan and Timothy Heritage)
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