From Istanbul, Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf issued a stark warning on Saturday regarding the repercussions of Zionist aggression against Iran, cautioning that it could lead to an open war with unpredictable outcomes. Speaking at the 51st session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Attaf stressed that genuine peace and security in the Middle East are unattainable without addressing the core of the conflict: the Palestinian cause.In his address, Minister Attaf described the current international and regional context as “extraordinary” and “truly tragic”. He asserted that international laws, including the UN Charter itself, have been completely sidelined. “The balances of civilized international dealings have been disrupted, and the logic of force no longer has any restrictions or limits,” Attaf stated, adding that fundamental concepts have become so distorted that “we now hear some defending the aggressor’s right to self-defense and to retaliate against the victim”.The minister condemned the aggressor’s “drive for absolute hegemony,” which he said has led it to openly declare its intention to reorder not only the Middle East but the entire international system.A Region in Unprecedented TurmoilHighlighting the dire situation, Attaf pointed to a series of aggressions that have plunged the Middle East into unprecedented turmoil. “Today, there is an Israeli aggression against Iran and an open war with all possibilities that threaten the region with multifaceted disasters of incalculable consequences,” he explained. He also cited the “repeated and systematic Israeli attacks on Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen,” which continue unabated.Attaf emphasized that the Israeli occupier persists in its war against the Palestinian people in Gaza, which has been ongoing for nearly two years. He expressed Algeria’s deepest solidarity with all brotherly nations suffering from the occupier’s delusion of ensuring its own security at the expense of the stability of others.The minister posed a series of critical questions challenging the legitimacy of the security claimed by the Israeli occupation:”What kind of security is this that the Israeli occupation monopolizes for itself, to the exclusion of all others?””What kind of security is built on violating the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of all countries in the region without accountability or oversight?””What kind of security is based on the pursuit of absolute hegemony over others, as well as the violation of all rules of international law and all principles of the UN Charter?”The Path to a Just and Lasting PeaceMinister Attaf outlined a clear, principled path forward, asserting that the region and the international community are at a decisive historical juncture. He insisted that lasting peace in the Middle East is contingent on three fundamental conditions:Resolving the Palestinian Issue: Peace is impossible “without addressing the core of the conflict in the region, which is the Palestinian cause”. This requires ending the occupation of Palestinian and Arab lands and urgently creating the conditions for an independent, sovereign Palestinian state with Al-Quds Al-Sharif (Jerusalem) as its capital.Upholding International Law: Security cannot be achieved “without everyone adhering to the rules of international law on an equal footing”. This demands an end to the “special system” of impunity that the Israeli occupation enjoys, a system defined by a lack of accountability, scrutiny, and punishment.Abandoning Hegemony: Peace cannot be realized “without abandoning the logic of force, the method of hegemony, and the policy of fait accompli”. All parties in the region and beyond must adhere to the controls and provisions established by international legitimacy, with no exceptions.Attaf concluded by describing these principles as “irrefutable truths” and “firm constants that cannot be denied or obscured by the smoke of fabricated conflicts and artificial wars”. He affirmed that these are the essential conditions for achieving a just, durable, and final peace throughout the entire Middle East.His intervention followed an emergency meeting of Arab League foreign ministers, also in Istanbul, which condemned the Israeli aggression against Iran as a violation of the UN Charter and a threat to regional peace. The ministers called on the UN Security Council to fulfill its responsibilities and urged de-escalation.
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