TEHRAN – Mohammad Reza Sahraei, adviser to the Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations, has condemned the assassination of Shirin Abu Akleh, the Palestinian journalist and Al-Jazeera correspondent, and called on the organization, especially the UN Security Council, to take urgent action to end the Israeli crimes.

“We have witnessed these days another crime by the Israeli entity against the Palestinian people. Two days ago, veteran Palestinian journalist Shirin Abu Akleh was martyred in a barbaric attack by the occupation forces in Jenin, occupied Palestine,” Sahraei said in his speech on Friday during a meeting of the information committee of the United Nations, according to Al Alam.

He added, “Shirin Abu Akleh was the voice of the courage of the Palestinian people and a national symbol of steadfastness and endurance in the face of the aggression and unjust occupation that the Palestinian people have endured for a long time.”

He noted, “The assassination of Shirin Abu Akleh by the Israeli entity is part of the long-term war, intimidation and violence against journalists in order to cover up the crimes of this entity against the Palestinians and its flagrant violation of international laws and norms.”

Sahrai considered the martyred Palestinian journalist another victim of the global community's inaction in the face of war crimes and the continuing terrorism practiced by the Israeli regime against the Palestinian people and other countries in the region.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran, while denouncing the assassination of Shirin Abu Akleh, and with a view to ending the attacks of the Israeli entity and its impunity, calls on the United Nations, especially the UN Security Council, to take urgent measures in support of the Palestinian people and to hold the entity accountable for its international crimes that it has committed over decades,” he stated. 
 
He pointed out, “The Islamic Republic of Iran, while condemning the assassination of the Palestinian journalist, affirms its unlimited and comprehensive support for the Palestinian people in the just and legitimate resistance against occupation and aggression and for them to obtain the right to self-determination.”
Earlier, during a meeting with his Qatari counterpart in Tehran on Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian alluded to the killing of the Palestinian journalist. 

The top diplomats of Iran and Qatar condemned the brutal killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, according to the Iranian foreign ministry.

They attributed the continuation of the acts of terror and atrocities by the Zionist regime to lack of serious action on the part of international and human rights organizations and also to their double standards regarding human rights abuses in Palestine including the targeted killing of journalists.

The foreign ministers of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Qatar then noted that when she was martyred, the Palestinian journalist was wearing a journalist vest. They added that the cold-blooded act by the Zionist regime shows Tel Aviv is opposed to freedom of speech and is seeking to cover up truth and its terrorist crimes in Palestine.

In the meeting, the Iranian foreign minister offered condolences over the martyrdom of Shirin Abu Akleh to her family, the resistant people of Palestine, the Christian community there and media outlets. Amir Abdollahian also handed over a memorial plaque to the Qatari foreign minister to give it to Abu Akleh’s family in Palestine.

Also, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh has strongly condemned the deliberate targeting of Shirin Abu Akleh, the famous reporter of Al Jazeera news channel in occupied Palestine by the Zionist regime’s forces.

Khatibzadeh extended condolences over the martyrdom of this senior correspondent to her family, Al Jazeera network and journalists who are committed to the cause of Palestine and the holy city of al-Quds all over the world.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman described this criminal act by the Zionist regime as clear proof of the regime’s lack of commitment to the role and place of the press, the media and journalists in promoting public awareness.
Khatibzadeh noted that the Zionism propaganda machine and its affiliated outlets, in spite of their false claims, are afraid of the dissemination of the truth, and the Zionist regime massacres reporters if needed.

Khatibzadeh urged international organizations, human rights bodies and international media unions to do an independent investigation into the martyrdom of Shirin Abu Akleh and demanded that the regime be held accountable for its crime.