Iran’s Raisi speaks to Macron, says Gaza war will expand if Israel doesn’t stop attacks

By Syed Zafar Mehdi

TEHRAN, Iran (AA) - Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi had a phone conversation with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Sunday, his office said, with both leaders discussing the situation and escalation in Palestine.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Raisi’s deputy chief of staff for political affairs, Mohammad Jamshidi, said the Iranian president received the call from Macron.

Raisi, he wrote, “reiterated that if the Zionist regime’s atrocities, including siege and mass murder, are not halted, the situation will become further complicated, and the theater will expand.”

The phone conversation came as the situation continued to dramatically escalate in Palestine with Israel pounding densely populated civilian areas in the besieged Gaza Strip.

The death toll also continues to mount, especially after Gazans were ordered to evacuate their homes and hospitals in the north and move to the south on Friday.

Earlier on Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, after completing his four-nation regional tour that took him to Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Qatar, said the risk of war expanding is rising.

In an interview with Al Jazeera in Doha, Iran’s top diplomat said Iran and other regional countries will not remain mute spectators if the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip continue unabated.

Amir-Abdollahian, who met senior political leaders on his trip, including the leaders of Palestinian groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad, said he hopes that political efforts prevent the spread of war, otherwise “no one knows what will happen in the next hour.”

On Saturday, Raisi had telephone conversations with leaders of Oman, Iraq and Qatar, discussing the situation in Palestine.

In a phone call with Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, Iran’s president urged Muslim countries to take a “decisive and prompt action” to stop the “Israeli killing machine,” his office said.

He also spoke to Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, stressing the importance of ending the siege, creating safe passages for Palestinian civilians, and allowing aid to reach people.

Raisi also had a phone call with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, with Palestine and the situation in Gaza figuring prominently in their discussions.

Earlier this week, Raisi had a first phone call with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman since the two countries restored their ties in March, discussing the situation in Palestine.

Some reports in Western media have pointed to Iran’s involvement in the Hamas operation against Israel, but Iranian authorities have denied any involvement.

In a statement on Monday, Iran’s mission to the UN said the country “emphatically stands in unflinching support of Palestine” but is “not involved” in it.