Tehran, April 18: Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei has said that the use of weapons of mass destruction is haram (forbidden in Islam).
Ayatollah Khamenei made the remarks in a message to the nuclear disarmament conference, which is currently underway in Tehran.
Iran regards utilizing nuclear weapons as haram and it is incumbent on everyone to safeguard humanity from such weapons, he said.
Ayatollah Khamenei added that nuclear and chemical weapons are serious threats to humanity.
The Iranian nation has been a victim of chemical weapons and more than anyone else understands the threat of such weapons and is ready to make every effort to eradicate such weapons, he stated.
He went on to say that nuclear technology is one of the greatest achievements of mankind and has a variety of uses in industry, medicine, and agriculture.
And every nation is entitled to the peaceful use of this technology, he added.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei said the only country in the world that has used nuclear weapons is calling other nations a nuclear threat.
“The only atomic criminal in the world is falsely claiming to be campaigning against the proliferation of nuclear weapons, while it has definitely made no serious effort toward this end,” he noted.
If the claims of the United States were true, the Zionist regime would not have been able to turn the occupied territories into a nuclear weapons arsenal, he said.
Although a number of countries have manufactured nuclear weapons, only the United States has carried out a nuclear attack, and now it is making claims about a campaign against nuclear weapons, he noted.
The Leader stated that any use of nuclear weapons, and even any threat to use such weapons, is a serious violation of human rights and a war crime.
Ayatollah Khamenei also expressed hope that the participants at the Tehran disarmament conference would make realistic proposals to eliminate this threat to humanity.
The Nuclear Energy For All, Nuclear Weapons For No One conference opened in Tehran on Saturday.
A number of major international figures, nuclear experts, and foreign ministers as well as representatives of international and non-governmental organizations are attending the two-day Tehran nuclear disarmament conference.
Ahmadinejad criticizes West’s double-standard approach toward Iran
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad criticized the West for its double-standard approach toward Iran’s nuclear program during his opening speech to the Tehran nuclear disarmament conference on Saturday.
The West turns a blind eye to Israel’s massive nuclear arsenal of over 200 warheads, he noted.
Israel has started several wars in the region, but nevertheless it still enjoys the full support of the United States and its allies, Ahmadinejad stated.
The Iranian president also called for reform of the United Nations Security Council, adding that it is undemocratic for certain states to have the right of veto.
The UN Security Council has been turned into a tool for implementing the policies of a few belligerent countries, he said.
To expect security to be established by the veto-wielding members of the Security Council and the possessors of the largest stockpiles of weapons is naïve, he observed.
He also proposed the establishment of an independent international group to oversee nuclear disarmament and prevent nuclear proliferation.
Ahmadinejad stated that countries that threaten other countries with nuclear weapons should be suspended from the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The Iranian president also said the United States, which is the only country to have actually used nuclear weapons, should be expelled from the IAEA.
-Agencies