TEHRAN – Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif asserted on Monday that Iran’s policy toward Palestine is “unchangeable” and “principled”.

During a meeting with Hamas delegation in Tehran, Zarif added that Iran will continue to support the Palestinian cause and the resistance movement against Israel.

Foreign Minister Zarif who had attended an emergency OIC meeting on Palestine in Istanbul on August 1 called on Islamic states to counter the Zionist regime’s expansionism and occupation and support the establishment of an independent and sustainable Palestinian state with al-Quds al-Sharif as its capital.

The Hamas delegation who had visited Tehran to participate in inauguration ceremony of President Hassan Rouhani praised Iran’s principled policies on the Palestine issue.

On Monday, Zarif also held separate meetings with a number of foreign officials who had visited Iran to participate in the inauguration ceremony. 

Among those who Zarif held talks with were: She Leonare Oshintudu, the deputy prime minister and foreign minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo; Jean Max Rakotomamonjy, the president of the National Assembly of Madagascar; Lundeg Purevsuren, the Mongolian president’s special envoy; and Georges Rebelo Chicoti, the foreign minister of Angola.

Rouhani was inaugurated as the 7th president of Iran in a high-profile ceremony on Saturday. The ceremony was attended by some 1200 guests, including 700 senior Iranian officials and 500 prominent officials from other countries.

The participation of foreign political figures, including European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, in the ceremony indicated the failure of attempts by the Trump administration to isolate Iran.

NA/PA