In These New Times

PressTV

14th January, 2009

Iran has criticized oil-rich Arab countries for accepting Israeli cash in the face of Tel Aviv’s continuous ‘war crimes’ in the Gaza Strip.

Senior Iranian military commander Yahya Rahim-Safavi, said Wednesday that depriving ‘Israel’s partners in crime’ of oil and energy exports was the least Arabs could do to show support for Gaza.

“The oil producers who need their income … are not going to do that,” Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal said at a Wednesday news conference.

“The use of oil, especially at this time, is an idea that is at least past its worth,” he said. “The important thing, oil is not a weapon. You can’t reverse a conflict by using oil.”

Safavi said Israel’s extreme use of “chemical weapons against defenseless Gazans constitute genocide and crime against humanity.”

The United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, adopted in 1948, states that “killing members of the group and causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group” are among acts that make case for genocide.

The Iranian official’s comments come as the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei called for a consumer boycott of Israeli goods on Tuesday.

“Since the Zionists are now at war with Islam, Muslims should avoid any action which might bring them [Israelis] profit,” Ayatollah Khamenei said.

Gazan Medics reported Wednesday that Palestinian death toll in the Gaza Strip has passed the 1,000 mark. Israel’s Operation Cast Lead has killed some 1015 people and injured 4700 others since its launch on December 27.