DUBAI: Iran’s president apologized on Wednesday to “all those affected” by the nationwide protest and bloody crackdown that followed it. President Masoud Pezeshkian also denounced unspecified “Western propaganda” surrounding the protests.
Pezeshkian said he knew the “great sorrow” felt by people in the protests and crackdown, without directly acknowledging the hand Iranian security forces had in the bloodshed.
“We are ashamed before the people, and we are obligated to assist all those who were harmed in these incidents,” Pezeshkian said. “We are not seeking confrontation with the people.”
Pezeshkian also insisted that his nation was “not seeking nuclear weapons … and are ready for any kind of verification.” His comments came during a speech at a commemoration marking Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iran is in the midst of negotiations with the United States over its nuclear program.
It remains unclear though if a nuclear deal will be reached. President Donald Trump has threatened to send another aircraft carrier to pressure Iran.
Meanwhile, the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, has been unable for months to inspect and verify Iran’s nuclear stockpile.
Iran’s president apologizes over crackdown as nation marks 1979 Islamic Revolution anniversary
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Iran’s president apologizes over crackdown as nation marks 1979 Islamic Revolution anniversary
- Masoud Pezeshkian: I know the ‘great sorrow’ felt by people in the protests and crackdown
- Iran’s president insists that his nation is ‘not seeking nuclear weapons’
Head of Gaza technocrat committee in Washington for ‘Board of Peace’ meeting: Palestinian officials
- Shaath is scheduled to deliver a speech outlining the general framework of his plan for the first 100 days
- Around two dozen world leaders and senior officials have traveled to Washington for the meeting
GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories: The head of the Palestinian technocratic committee formed to handle day-to-day governance of Gaza, Ali Shaath, was in Washington Thursday to attend the inaugural “Board of Peace” meeting, two Palestinian officials told AFP.
“Ali Shaath... arrived in Washington at dawn today to participate in the Washington meeting of the Board of Peace,” a source familiar with the committee told AFP.
“Shaath is scheduled to deliver a speech outlining the general framework of his plan for the first 100 days. He is accompanied by the committee’s official in charge of the finance portfolio,” the source added.
A committee member confirmed to AFP that Shaath had arrived “following an invitation he received yesterday to attend the Washington meeting.”
Around two dozen world leaders and senior officials have traveled to Washington for the meeting, which was set up after the Trump administration, along with Qatar and Egypt, negotiated a ceasefire in October to halt two years of war in Gaza.
Around two dozen world leaders and senior officials have traveled to Washington for the inaugural meeting of the “Board of Peace,” which was set up after the Trump administration, along with Qatar and Egypt, negotiated a ceasefire in October to halt two years of war in Gaza.
At Thursday’s meeting, Trump is expected to detail pledges of more than $5 billion for Gaza.
The meeting will also look at how to launch the International Stabilization Force that will ensure security in Gaza.
