"In this tragic disaster, which is aptly named Nakba Day, the apartheid Zionist regime was established and millions of Palestinians, as the original inhabitants and owners of Palestine, were forced off their ancestral lands," the Iranian president said in his message.
The following is the full text of President Raisi's message on the occasion of the commemoration of the 75th Anniversary of Nakba Day:
In the Name of Allah, the most Compassionate, the most Merciful
May 15, 1948, reminds us of one of the most painful tragedies in human history. This ominous phenomenon has led to the most protracted and miserable political and human crisis worldwide in the last one hundred years and has brought about extended insecurity in the west of Asia, organized occupation and cruel usurpation of the Palestinian territories, killing of the innocent people of Palestine and violation of the most fundamental rights of the original inhabitants of this sacred land in the past 75 years.
In this tragic disaster, which is aptly named Nakba Day, the apartheid Zionist regime was established and millions of Palestinians, as the original inhabitants and owners of Palestine, were forced off their ancestral lands. Violent and cruel treatment against Palestinian prisoners, desecration of the Islamic and Christian sanctities, depriving the inhabitants of this land of their religious freedoms, targeted assassination of the officials and the ordinary people of Palestine, destruction of houses, farms and business centers belonging to Palestinians and expansion of the settlements against the international resolutions and rules, among others, are only some pages of this regime's dark history in violating the fundamental principles of the international law, human rights and the humanitarian law, as the instant approach and procedure of this regime in the past decades. It is clear that the Western supporters of the regime, particularly the U.S., are accomplices to its crimes.
Following its extremist and inhuman measures against the people of Palestine at the West Bank and desecration of the Islamic sanctities at the holy al-Quds in recent months, the Zionist regime, by mounting massive invasions to different parts of the Gaza Strip, particularly residential buildings, and by the targeted assassination of the Palestinian civilians, has tried to evade its internal growing and multi-faceted crises. These crimes, which have led to the martyrdom of tens of Palestinian civilians, including women and children, are a tangible expression of state terrorism and mass murder which has been continuously the constant approach of this regime during the past 75 years.
For more than 18 years, residents of the Gaza Strip have been cruelly besieged inside the largest natural prison in the world and struggling with a grave humanitarian crisis. The continued illegal and inhuman embargo imposed against the Gaza Strip as well as the continuous killing of its people by the Zionist regime are blatant and clear violations of the fundamental principles of international law, human rights and humanitarian law. Unfortunately, the silence, inaction and indifference of the fake claimants of the human rights against these crimes have only further emboldened this apartheid regime.
While strongly condemning the crimes of the apartheid Zionist regime against the people of Palestine and the regional nations and reiterating the necessity of taking swift, effective and preemptive measures by the responsible international bodies, mainly the United Nations, to end this Zionist regime's crimes and to support the Palestinian people, the Islamic Republic of Iran once again declares its solidarity with the innocent people of Palestine and reiterates its support to legitimate cause and resistance of the nation of Palestine to free the occupied territories and establish an independent and consolidated state in all parts of the historical lands of Palestine with holy al-Quds as its capital city.
In conclusion, I would like to recall and re-emphasize the democratic plan of the Islamic Republic of Iran for the political resolution of Palestine's occupation crisis by holding a national referendum with the participation of all original inhabitants of this land, including Muslims, Christians and Jews, to exercise the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people and choose their own political system.