Trump will fail in 'crusader' Mideast plan: Iran official

A close adviser to Iran's supreme leader on Thursday described the US Mideast peace plan as a continuation of the objectives of "crusaders and Zionists". The plan, announced Tuesday by US President Donald Trump, consists of "selling and dismantling Muslim lands", said Ali Akbar Velayati, who advises Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on foreign policy issues.

Trump's "objective is the realization of the goal of the crusaders and Zionists", Velayati said during a brief press conference in Tehran. The US plan, seen as overwhelmingly supportive of Israeli goals, has been firmly rejected by the Palestinians.

It grants the Jewish state full control of Jerusalem and gives it a US green light to annex key parts of the occupied West Bank, including in the strategic Jordan Valley. "Trump will fail in this plan, just like he has failed in his previous anti-Islamic plans", the former Iranian foreign minister added, saying its announcement had already united Palestinian leaders "like never before in the history of their battle".

"The Islamic republic will certainly not remain silent", Velayati said. "The Iranian people, guided by the supreme leader, continue to consider the Palestinian question as to the principal concern of the Muslim world".

Iran will continue its consultations with "Arab countries that remain faithful to the Palestinian cause", he added. Iran does not recognize Israel.

On Tuesday evening, Iran's foreign ministry called Trump's plan "the treason of the century" and said it was "doomed to fail".