News - Middle East: Iran’s top human rights official has called on the United Nations Security Council to stop Israel’s aggression against Syria and hold the occupying regime accountable for its crimes following the fall of President Bashar al-Assad.

Kazem Gharibabadi, secretary of Iran's High Council for Human Rights, made the remarks during a speech he delivered at a meeting of the Group of Friends of Neutrality for Peace, Security, and Sustainable Development in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, on Wednesday.

He strongly condemned recent strikes by the Zionist regime against Syria and the occupation of additional parts of its territory.

Gharibabadi described such actions as “further evidence of the Israeli regime's aggressive and expansionist nature and its complete disregard for international norms and laws, calling for practical action by the international community, particularly the UNSC, to halt these aggressions and hold the Zionist regime accountable for its crimes.”

Since the fall of the Assad government, the Israeli regime has carried out almost 500 airstrikes across Syria, targeting critical civilian and military infrastructures. The regime has also pushed its forces into a buffer zone in violation of the 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria.

Israel has also sent troops into a buffer zone east of the occupied Golan Heights. Still, the regime denies advancing towards Damascus, insisting that its forces were stationed within the zone.

Gharibabadi also serves as Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs. While emphasizing Iran's principled stance on respecting Syria's unity, national sovereignty, and territorial integrity, he said determining Syria's destiny and deciding its future is solely the responsibility of its people.

He said achieving such a goal “requires the swift end of military conflicts, prevention of terrorist activities, and the initiation of national dialogue involving all segments of Syrian society to establish an inclusive government that represents all the people of Syria.”

Gharibabadi further emphasized Iran's commitment to assisting Syria in establishing peace and stability in the Arab country and continuing consultations with relevant parties in the region toward this goal.

The Group of Friends of Neutrality for Peace, Security, and Sustainable Development was created by Turkmenistan's initiative within the United Nations, with 25 countries having joined it to date.

Press TV