[Ahmad Mohammadi Consul General of the Islamic republic of Iran in Karachi]
Imam Khomeini (RA) with the purpose of mobilizing the world nations to support the liberation movement of the oppressed people of Palestine, announced the last Friday of the auspicious month of Ramazan as the World Qods Day. This decision was taken due to the reason that the Islamic world, taking benefit from the spirituality emanating from fasting in the holy month of Ramazan, gets the necessary preparedness for focusing on the most critical issue of the Islamic world, that is, the indispensability of the liberation of Palestine and the First Qibla of the Muslims. On this basis every year, the last Friday of Ramazan is observed as the World Qods Day in Iran as well as in all other Islamic Countries, even in non- Islamic ones.
Today, with the disclosure of the dimensions of the shameful “ Deal of the Century “ marking of the Qods Day has attained much more importance than ever before, as now it is no secret to anyone that the issue of Palestine is not the issue for Palestinians only, rather it reaches farther up the Palestinian land, owing to the fact the Zionist regime was formed to stand at the forefront during execution of the plans causing dispersion in the Islamic world, particularly in the strategic region of the Middle East and West Asia. If the Islamic ummah remains silent on the Palestinian issue and the Deal of the century, in the near future the hardships and sufferings that have been imposed upon the oppressed Palestinians over these long years would be meted out to all the Muslims.
You know, it very well that the ‘peace for welfare’ plan named as the ‘Deal of the Century’ is contradictory to several UN resolutions including 242 (1967), 338 (1973) and 2334 (2016). By virtue of these resolution, the occupation and rule of the Zionist regime over the occupied area of the June 1967 (including eastern Qods, west bank of the Jordan River and Gaza strips) is seen as illegal and this regime must exit from the occupied territories, so that a sovereign Palestinian government could be established with eastern Qods as its capital. For this very reason it may be said that the Deal of the Century is a totally illegal deal, which the Trump administration wants to impose on the Palestinians using the “carrot and stick” policy.
According to the belief of a number of Palestinians and freelance analysts, the Deal of the Century was unacceptable in terms of its contents and was disgracing and contemptuous in terms of method, and so the NAM (Non-Aligned Movement with 125 members and 25 observer countries), OIC (The Organization of Islamic Cooperation with 57 member countries), Arab League (with 22 member states) and African Union (with 55 member states) rejected this plan. All Palestinian movements also opposed it, which shows that this is a stillborn plan and, Insha-Allah, the last nail on the coffin of this plan will be rammed on the Qods Day of this year.
It is necessary to remind my Pakistani brethren that the Islamic Republic of Iran, besides clearly opposing the Deal of the Century, lays stress on holding of a referendum as the only acceptable, democratic and fair way for resolution of the Palestinian issue. According to this plan which is also registered in the UN secretariat, return of the displaced Palestinians to their own land and holding of a referendum among the real masses of this territory for determining their own fate and adopting the political system of their choice is the most effective way for resolution of this dispute. On the basis of this plan, Muslims, Jews and Christians who are Palestinian by origin, shall be able to choose a legal system to rule over themselves and shall enjoy freedom and equal rights.
Promotion of this plan requires unity among all Islamic countries and their self-restraint from any division on the issue of Palestine.
In the end, I stress upon the proposal of signing of a ‘ No Aggression Pact’ between my country and all Arab countries of the region. This proposed treaty may completely put to an end the fear that has been falsely created by the ruler of the Zionist regime and the US in these countries.
I hope that our Muslim friends in these countries would welcome this idea and break the root of the imaginary insecurity in the region, so that all the Muslim countries could be able to focus on the democratic solution of the Palestine issue.
