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An injured person is evacuated to Rambam hospital in the northern city of Haifa, Israel, May 31, 2010. Clash happened on Monday morning between an international Gaza aid flotilla and Israeli navy, causing at least 19 casualties, Israeli military confirmed. (Xinhua)
TEHRAN, May 31 (Xinhua) -- Iranian officials on Monday strongly condemned Israeli deadly attack on a flotilla carrying pro- Palestinian activists and tons of supplies for Gaza and called for international punitive measures against Israel.
The Israeli raid on the Freedom Flotilla was indicative of Tel Aviv's weakness, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said, adding that the regime in Tel Aviv is a threat to global peace and security.
Israel "thinks that such actions are a sign of power, whereas they should be aware that this will lead to their end," Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying.
Calling for international efforts to save the Palestinian nation, the Iranian president said, "Supporting the people of Palestine is equal to supporting peace and freedom of every nation, " the local satellite Press TV reported.
Iran's Defense Minister Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi also said the international community must isolate Israel for attacking an aid convoy en route to the impoverished Gaza Strip, according to Press TV.
"Israel triggered the countdown of its destruction by attacking the Freedom Flotilla," the report quoted Vahidi as saying.
The Iranian minister added that the imposition of all- encompassing sanctions, severing all diplomatic, economic and political ties with the Zionist regime is the least the international community could do against Israel for committing such a horrendous crime, according to Press TV.
Urging the international community for urgent reaction, he said that "This is an important test for the advocates of human rights which will show how committed they are to their slogans."
Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili also strongly condemned the attack on the aid convoy, saying it shows Israel's " sheer desperation," according to Press TV.
"Under growing pressure from world public opinion, the criminal and terrorist Zionist regime has now resorted to maritime murder," Jalili was quoted as saying.
He said such moves by the Israeli regime symbolize Tel Aviv and Washington's "opposition to the freedom of nations."
"The behavior of the Israeli regime over the past year, particularly the terrorist act this morning, indicates Obama's peace plan was a deceptive move aiming to buy the Zionist regime time," Press TV quoted Jalili as saying.
He said the Israeli attack on the Gaza aid flotilla is a test of will for all those who claim to be advocates of freedom and human rights.
"The U.S. as well as the Zionist regime's regional and international sympathizers should be accountable to the world public opinion for supporting Tel Aviv," said Jalili.
Meanwhile, spokesman for the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Kazem Jalali described the fatal attack by Israel on the Gaza aid convoy a "war crime", according to Press TV.
Jalali also criticized Tel Aviv for being a "threat to global security," said the report.
In a statement issued by Iran's Foreign Ministry on Monday, Tehran called on the UN Security Council and the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to hold emergency sessions and take swift action against the Zionist regime for attacking Gaza aid convoy, according to the official IRNA news agency.
Foreign Ministry of Iran condemned Israel's Monday attack and said, "The incident once again revealed the criminal and warmonger nature of the Zionist regime."
The Zionist regime's attack on ships and their crew recalls acts of sea piracy in the past centuries and such measures are clear examples of maritime terrorism, said the statement.
It is now time for the international community to take strong actions against the constant crimes of the aggressive and occupying regime, the statement added, said the statement.
In the meantime, Iranian students gathered in front of the UN headquarters in Tehran in protest to the Israeli Monday attack, said Press TV.
The students held Palestinian flags, chanting "Death to Israel, " "Death to America," and "Death to Britain," according to the report.
Early Monday morning, Israeli forces launched an attack on the aid fleet en route to the besieged Gaza Strip, killing at least 19 people and leaving scores injured.
