Pezeshkian to attend Islamic-Arab summit in Doha on Zionist regime's aggression

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed Iran’s participation, saying both he and the president would deliver speeches.

“It is time for action, and words alone are no longer enough,” he said during a late Thursday interview with IRIB, stressing that the gathering must move beyond statements of condemnation.

The summit comes after Israel carried out missile strikes on Doha last Tuesday, targeting senior Hamas leaders. The attack, which killed relatives and aides of Hamas officials but failed to assassinate the resistance group’s leaders, was widely condemned and marked the first Israeli assault on Qatari soil. Qatar has warned of a collective regional response.

Araghchi recalled that in the last meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Jeddah, Iran had urged concrete steps.

“We proposed cutting ties with the Zionist regime, ending economic cooperation, threatening those who side with Israel and the West, and imposing sanctions and economic punishment,” he said.

Such measures, he added, remain necessary.

He also dismissed reliance on rhetoric and resolutions. “The people of Gaza do not need fiery speeches. They need food, water, medicine, and, above all, their rights, their land, and the ability to decide their own future,” the minister said.

Araghchi noted that Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu had exposed Israel’s true face.

“He proved something that has always been clear to us and the Iranian people, but many in the region ignored. Now, not only for the people but also for governments in the region, it is obvious that the main threat is the Zionist regime.”

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said in an interview with CNN that the summit would determine the next course of action.

He expressed hope for “a collective regional response” to Israel’s attack, which came as Hamas officials were discussing the latest US-endorsed proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza.

Since violating a ceasefire in Hamas in March, the Zionist regime has martyred 12,170 Palestinians, bringing the death toll to 64,718 since the start of the genocidal war in October 2023.

The regime has imposed a strict blockade on the Palestinian territory, where a lack of food and necessary supplies has prompted the UN to officially announce a famine.