TEHRAN: Iran on Monday called for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza to stop Israel鈥檚 鈥渃rimes鈥� in the territory as the truce between Israel and Hamas entered its final day.
With the four-day truce is approaching its scheduled end early Tuesday, Hamas has said it is willing to extend the pause and free more hostages.
The pause that began Friday has seen dozens of hostages freed, with over 100 Palestinian prisoners released by Israel in return.
鈥淎s the Islamic Republic of Iran, we want and expect... that the crimes of the Zionist regime against the Palestinian people will be stopped completely,鈥� said Nasser Kanani, Iran鈥檚 foreign ministry spokesman.
Kanani told reporters during his weekly press conference that Iran is 鈥渇ollowing鈥� the extension of the truce 鈥渨ith the regional party active in this field, the state of Qatar.鈥�
Iran鈥檚 Foreign Minster Hossein Amir-Abdollahian was on a visit to the Qatari capital Doha on Thursday.
鈥淥ne of the main goals of the ongoing negotiations and efforts is to ensure that the existing temporary cease-fire takes a stable form and that the cruel aggression of the Zionist regime (Israel) against Gaza is not repeated,鈥� he added.
But 鈥渋t seems that the Zionist regime after not being able to achieve its objectives鈥� after the offensive on Gaza, 鈥渨ants to obtain a tangible victory,鈥� he added, suggesting Israel would continue its offensive in Gaza.
Iran, which has labelled Israel鈥檚 military campaign in Gaza as a genocide, has denied any direct involvement in Hamas鈥檚 attack on Israel.
The Palestinian militant group poured across the border on October 7, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli officials.
In response, Israel launched a military campaign to destroy Hamas, killing nearly 15,000 people, mostly civilians and including thousands of children, according to Gaza鈥檚 Hamas government.