"We don't recognise an entity like Israel to be a country": Iranian diplomat

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], April 19 (ANI): Acting Consul General of Iran to Mumbai, Davoud Rezaei Eskandari, said that they do not recognise "an entity like Israel" as a country.
Highlighting the ongoing tensions between Iran and Israel, Rezaei Eskandari claimed that after Iran's victory in Iraq, they proposed a solution for the Palestinian cause.
Further, he said that the Palestinian people, including Muslims, Jews and Christians, should have an election and whatever they decide, it should be it.
"We don't recognise an entity like Israel to be a country. After the Islamic Republic of Iran's victory in Iraq, we have proposed a very reasonable solution for the Palestinian cause. It's very democratic and we have proposed a democratic solution that all those belonging to the Palestinian land--Muslims, even Jews and Christians, all those who are there and all those who have been forced to migrate come there, have an election and whatever they decide, that's that," Eskandari told ANI.
"We believe that with such a decision, there wouldn't be any Israeli country," he added.
The Iran-Iraq War was a war between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 22, 1980, to August 20, 1988. The war began when Iraq, under dictator Saddam Hussein, invaded Iran under Ayatollah Khomeini to gain control of the Shatt al-Arab river, annexing the oil-rich Iranian province of Khuzestan, and permanently weakening the Iranian military. The war ended in a stalemate and a UN ceasefire with no side gaining any meaningful victory.
Meanwhile, Israel launched missile strikes against Tehran during the early hours of Friday morning (local time), ABC News reported, citing a senior US official.
However, the official could not confirm whether Syria and Iraq sites were hit as well. The report came shortly after local sources reported blasts in the Isfahan region in central Iran.
The missile launches come after Iran launched an offensive on targets around Israel on Saturday last week, according to Israeli military authorities, in which the nation fired a barrage of over 300 unmanned drones and missiles.
Noting the US sanctions on Iran following the attack, Eskandari said that these sanctions were started almost after Iran's victory, adding that these sanctions did not have the result and that because of these sanctions, Iran has been able to achieve great progress in different areas.
"...This sanction is almost after the victory of the Islamic Republic of Iran, they started this sanction. And after also 45 years of this sanction...they are claiming that this sanction didn't have the result and outcomes that they were thinking about. And so because of this sanction, we have been able to make great progress in different areas...," he said.
Highlighting India-Iran friendship, Eskandari said, "We are thankful to our friends for the Indo-Iranian Friendship Forum...there are lots of commonalities between Iran and India..."
He further said that India's reputation of supporting the Palestinian people is an asset for New Delhi.
"We believe India historically has had a very good reputation of being a neutral country. And when we are coming to the Palestinian... India has a very good reputation for supporting the people of Palestine. I think is an asset for India," he said. (ANI)