Leader calls on OIC to focus on Palestine issue

TEHRAN, May 18 (MNA) – Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said that the Organization of the Islamic Conference should keep its main focus on the Palestine issue.

Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks in a meeting with Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade on Sunday.

The OIC was primarily established with the aim of supporting Palestine, the Leader said, adding that all countries should feel Palestine issue as their own.

He also said that the OIC must be strengthened politically and it should boost its Islamic spirit.

Wade, for his part, briefed Ayatollah Khamenei on his two-year tenure as the rotational president of the OIC and efforts made to expand economic cooperation between the Islamic countries.

Ayatollah Khamenei, in a separate meeting with Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Sunday, said it is expected that all those who hold official positions in any country play an active role in supporting Palestinians.

The Leader also said that Iran-Sri Lanka relations are deep-rooted, insisting that these relations have never been as good as they are today.

And this is due to the motivation for further cooperation between the two countries, Ayatollah Khamenei noted.

Rajapaksa also said Sri Lanka has established a friendly relationship with the Palestinian government and that his government has supported Palestinians in the international arena.

He said Iran-Sri Lanka relations are centuries-old and Colombo is ready to expand its economic ties with Iran.