Iran says Mideast peace talks are illegal

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has described the US-brokered peace talks between the Palestinian Authority and Israel as “illegal” and “unacceptable.”

Speaking at an International Quds Day rally in Kashan on Friday, Mottaki said the primary legal flaw of the talks is the fact that the term in office of one of the negotiators has expired.

“On what basis does Mr. Mahmoud Abbas participate in the peace talks as the representative of the Palestinian nation, while his tenure has ended?” IRNA quoted the Iranian foreign minister as saying on Friday.

“As clearly expressed by the Palestinian people and most Palestinian groups, these negotiations are unacceptable,” he added.

Mottaki called the peace talks puppetry and propaganda and noted that Tel Aviv never met the three conditions set in what is referred to as the Arab Initiative.

The only path that can lead to the realization of the aspirations of the Palestinian nation is resistance, and the Palestinians are well aware of this fact, he added.

After over 60 years, the efforts to create legitimacy for the Israeli regime have failed, and the nations of the region do not recognize it, Mottaki said.

On International Quds Day this year, Iranians and other people around the world held massive rallies in support of the Palestinian resistance against Israel.

Initiated by the late Imam Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic, International Quds Day is observed on the last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims throughout the globe are urged to hold rallies in support of the Palestinian resistance against what Imam Khomeini called “the illegitimate Israeli regime occupying Palestine.”