Iran’s Raisi: No Role for US in Rebuilding Gaza

The Iranian regime has decided that the best defense is, indeed, a good offense when it comes to its seminal role in the October 7 slaughter by Hamas terrorists of 1,200 people in southern Israel. On Saturday, the Islamic Republic staged the Tehran International Conference on Palestine, providing an audience comprising, according to a statement by the Foreign Ministry, representatives of more than 50 nations, the golden opportunity to hear Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi chastise the United States and Western nations ostensibly for failing to support human rights in Gaza.

Accusing Israel and the US of genocide and crimes against humanity, the Iranian leader admonished the Americans not to be part of planning a new Gaza in the aftermath of the current war. The government-run Tasnim news agency quoted him as saying, “The Americans should not plan for the future of Gaza, because the future of this region will be determined by the people and its legal government.” Raisi lamented what he called the “ineffectiveness” of international organizations that purport to be committed to human rights when it comes to Gaza.

Also held in Tehran on Saturday was the first meeting of the Iran-China Think Tank Dialogue Forum, described as an initiative to bring those “two great civilizations” closer, strengthening their cooperation “in bilateral, regional, and international areas to face the new conditions.”