TEHRAN, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Wednesday that he and his accompanying delegation will not be able to take part in a UN Security Council (UNSC) meeting on the Israel-Palestine crisis in New York later in the day due to the delay in visa issuance of the U.S. government.
Amir-Abdollahian said the United States gave the visas to the Iranian delegation at 01:00 a.m. local time on Wednesday (2130 GMT on Tuesday), which practically made it impossible for its members to attend the UNSC meeting, according to the official news agency IRNA.
The Iranian foreign minister added, "At present, efforts are focused on finding a solution to achieve a lasting truce by releasing and exchanging all Palestinians in Israeli prisons and the Israelis held captive in Gaza."
He said constant contacts and consultations were continuing between him and his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, whose country was mediating the exchange of hostages and prisoners.
The high-level UNSC meeting on the Israel-Palestine crisis is the latest effort by the international community to push for a lasting ceasefire in Gaza.
Following weeks of Israeli strikes against Gaza in retaliation for an attack on Oct. 7 by Hamas against Israel, the two sides reached a four-day humanitarian truce last week, which was extended for another two days starting on Tuesday.
