Iran’s president slams the West over the war in Gaza and support for Israel

Associated Press

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iran’s new president has slammed the West, saying that Israel is “committing massacres” in the war in Gaza and is using European and American weapons to do so. Masoud Pezeshkian spoke on Wednesday in Baghdad as he kicked off his first trip abroad after being sworn into office. Regional tensions are increasingly pulling both majority Shiite countries into the Mideast fray. For Iran, its relationship with Iraq remains crucial for economic, political and religious reasons. Baghdad meanwhile has been trying to balance its relationship with Tehran, which backs powerful Shiite militias in the country, as well as with the United States, which maintains a force of 2,500 troops in Iraq.