TEHRAN- Hossein Amir Abdollahian, the Foreign Minister of Iran, has denounced the current suppression of pro-Palestinian demonstrations in American universities and called on Washington to immediately halt its backing of Israel. 

In a post on X on Thursday, Amir Abdollahian noted that “the suppression and harsh treatment by the American police and security forces of professors and students protesting the genocide and war crimes of the Israeli regime in various universities has deeply worried and abhorred the public opinion of the world.”

“This repression is in line with the continuation of Washington's full-fledged support for the Israeli regime and clearly shows the double standard and contradictory behavior of the American government towards freedom of expression,” he added. 

Abdollahian spoke of “the genocide of tens of thousands of Palestinian women and children, especially after the discovery of mass graves of the sick and injured and medical staff in the vicinity of Nasser Hospital in the Gaza Strip.”

“One cannot hide the outpouring of distaste that the world feels for the Israeli regime and those who support it,” he declared. 

The top Iranian diplomat pointed out, “The White House must immediately stop supporting the Israeli regime’s war crimes, and be held accountable.”

As anti-Israel protests spread across college campuses, police have detained hundreds of demonstrators in several U.S. locales. 

Approximately 108 people were arrested at Boston’s Emerson College during the most recent operation. Ninety-three individuals at the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles were previously placed under arrest for trespassing. 

Conflicts between police and protestors also occurred at Austin’s University of Texas. There were also 34 arrests there, according to the authorities. 

An increasing number of students are attempting to establish camps or walk out of classes at U.S. universities in protest of Israel’s military war in Gaza. 

Since Israel began the war on October 7, the United States has given it the utmost military and intelligence backing. In addition, Washington has rejected multiple resolutions from the UN Security Council that demanded an end to the ruthless military assault that has murdered over 34,100 Palestinians, the most of them women and children.

American students have been demonstrating fervently against Washington’s overt backing for the slaughter and their colleges’ links to the Israeli regime. 

President Joe Biden, like many other Congress members and pro-Israel bigots, has accused the students protesting Israel’s crimes of anti-Semitism.

“U.S. lacks moral competence to comment on human rights”

In a post on X on Thursday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani has noted that the U.S. is bereft of any moral competence to comment on human rights, the rights of women, and the freedom of expression.

He also regarded as “regretful” such violence of the U.S. police in dealing with university students protesting U.S. support for the Zionist crimes in Gaza. 

Kanaani underscored that such ruthless suppression has revealed the true nature of the American officials’ words and action.   

Additionally, he sneered at the U.S. freedom of speech while posting images of students, including schoolgirls, being suppressed by the U.S. police. 

In recent days, American universities have become scenes of police crackdowns against student protestors who support the Palestinians and demand the genocide in Gaza be stopped.

Culled from Tehran Times