Iran's Raisi to attend OIC talks in Riyadh on Gaza crisis

"President Raisi will attend the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation' (OIC) summit in Riyadh, where the issue of Palestine will be discussed," the Iranian website reported.

 IRAN’S PRESIDENT Ebrahim Raisi gestures to the audience as he completes his address to the UN General Assembly, last week. (photo credit: Mike Segar/Reuters)
IRAN’S PRESIDENT Ebrahim Raisi gestures to the audience as he completes his address to the UN General Assembly, last week.
(photo credit: Mike Segar/Reuters)

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will travel to Saudi Arabia on Sunday, the Etemadonline news website reported on Monday, the first visit by an Iranian head of state since Tehran and Riyadh ended years of hostility under a China-brokered deal in March.

"President Raisi will attend the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation' (OIC) summit in Riyadh, where the issue of Palestine will be discussed," the Iranian website reported.

The Israel-Hamas conflict

World and regional powers have failed to reach any consensus on how to deal with the escalating conflict in the four weeks since fighters from Hamas terrorists stormed southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing some 1,400 Israelis, mainly civilians, and taking more than 240 people hostage.

 New images of Kibbutz Be'eri destruction (credit: screenshot)
New images of Kibbutz Be'eri destruction (credit: screenshot)

Israel has since struck Hamas-controlled Gaza from the air, imposed a siege and launched a ground assault, stirring global alarm over humanitarian conditions in the enclave. 

Regional rivals Tehran and Riyadh agreed to resume ties in March under a deal negotiated by China after seven years of hostility, which had threatened stability and security in the Gulf and helped fuel conflicts in the Middle East from Yemen to Syria.