• Khamenei urges Muslim world to halt trade with Israel
• Blinken to visit Tel Aviv on Friday

ANKARA: Turkiye and Iran on Wednesday called for a regional conference aimed at averting the spread of unrest into the Middle East.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian a day after Iran’s top diplomat met Hamas leaders in Qatar.

Fidan said Turkiye was pushing for an immediate ceasefire because “it is not difficult to predict that this spiral of violence will grow” without a permanent solution to the Israel-Palestine issue.

“We do not want the human tragedy in Gaza to turn into a war that affects the region’s countries,” Fidan said.

The Iranian foreign minister “shared with us that there are strong indications that other armed elements in the region may intervene in the conflict if conditions do not change”, Fidan said.

“A ceasefire and peace have become more essential.” Amir-Abdollahian said a peace conference involving “Muslim and Arab” countries should be held “as soon as possible”.

‘Block oil and food’

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urged Muslim countries to halt trade with Israel, including oil exports, in response to its bombardment of Gaza.

“Islamic governments must insist on quickly ending the crimes,” Khamenei told a gathering of students in Tehran. “Muslim countries should not cooperate economically with the Zionist regime (Israel),” he said, calling for a “block on oil and food exports”.

Khamenei lambasted Western governments who “stood against Palestine”, naming Britain, France and the United States. “The Muslim world must not forget who is putting pressure on the population of Gaza. It’s not just about the Zionist regime,” he said.

Defence Minister Mohammad Reza Ashtiani warned “certain European countries which help” Israel to “be careful not to anger Muslims”.

Meanwhile, US top diplomat Antony Blinken will begin a new Middle East trip this week, a spokesperson announced on Tuesday, as President Joe Biden seeks “urgent mechanisms” to reduce regional tensions.

“Secretary Blinken will travel to Israel on Friday for meetings with members of the Israeli government, and then will make other stops in the region,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said, without further details.

The White House said later that Biden had spoken on Tuesday with the leader of key US partner Jordan, where both leaders “discussed urgent mechanisms to stem violence, calm rhetoric, and reduce regional tensions,” a White House statement said.

It added that the two leaders “agreed that it is critical to ensure that Palestinians are not forcibly displaced outside of Gaza” and that Biden had “confirmed unwavering US support for Jordan and His Majesty’s leadership.”

Published in Dawn, November 2nd, 2023