DUBAI (Reuters) – Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will travel to Saudi Arabia on Sunday, the Etemadonline news website reported on Monday, the first visit by an Iranian head of state since Tehran and Riyadh ended years of hostility under a China-brokered deal in March.
“President Raisi will attend the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’ (OIC) summit in Riyadh, where the issue of Palestine will be discussed,” the Iranian website reported.
World and regional powers have failed to reach any consensus on how to deal with the escalating conflict in the four weeks since fighters from Hamas militants stormed southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing some 1,400 Israelis, mainly civilians, and taking more than 240 people hostage.
Israel has since struck Hamas-controlled Gaza from the air, imposed a siege and launched a ground assault, stirring global alarm over humanitarian conditions in the enclave. At least 10,022 Palestinians, including 4,104 children, have been killed so far in Israeli strikes on Gaza since Oct. 7, the Gaza health ministry said on Monday.
Regional rivals Tehran and Riyadh agreed to resume ties in March under a deal negotiated by China after seven years of hostility, which had threatened stability and security in the Gulf and helped fuel conflicts in the Middle East from Yemen to Syria.
(Reporting by Elwely Elwelly; Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Gareth Jones)
