Iran’s Velayati: Israel behind Massacre of Muslims in Myanmar
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Secretary-General of the World Assembly of Islamic Awakening Ali Akbar Velayati condemned the mass killing of Rohingya Muslims at the hands of Myanmar government and said the Tel Aviv regime has organized “the horrible crimes”.
“The Zionist regime’s plot to clean its cruel and child-killing image and spread the culture of oppression against children, the elderly and innocent people in coordination with the government of Myanmar shows a horrible and organized crime against the deprived Rohingya Muslims,” Velayati said in a statement on Saturday.
He further emphasized that “the sinister plot organized by international Zionism” would result in massacre of Muslims, oppression and forced displacement, ethnic and racial cleansing, as well as regional instability.
All of the international bodies, including the United Nations, Human Rights Watch and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), as well as world countries should have a correct understanding of “the calculated plot”, Velayati said.
He further stressed the necessity for “swift and effective” measures to prevent the recurrence of such tragedies and bring the perpetrators to justice.
Velayati also said if the government of Myanmar refuses to cooperate, its crimes must be addressed at the UN Security Council.
He also called on the OIC to hold an emergency session and Muslim countries to cut their diplomatic and trade ties with Myanmar to express their firm support for the defenseless Rohingya Muslims.
The Rohingya have long faced severe discrimination and were the targets of violence in 2012 that killed hundreds and drove about 140,000 people from their homes to camps for the internally displaced.
Over the past days, intensifying clashes between security forces and insurgents in western Myanmar have sent about 270,000 terrified civilians scrambling toward the Bangladesh border in a desperate search for refuge.
A United Nations report in February said the military crackdown on the Rohingya had led to gang rape, the killing of hundreds of civilians and the forced displacement of people.
