“The Security Council, due to a lack of political will, is not capable of fulfilling its duties within the framework of the organization’s Charter to defend the rights of the Palestinian people,” Gholam Ali Khoshrou said at a Security Council meeting on Friday.

According to Press TV, the Iranian ambassador reaffirmed the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)'s support for Palestinians’ ideals and their inalienable rights and stressed the importance of establishing an independent Palestinian state.

The NAM member states believe that the Security Council’s lack of political will has led to the world body’s failure to discharge its responsibilities regarding the Palestinian issue, he said.

Iran holds the rotating presidency of the Non-Aligned Movement.

The Iranian envoy pointed to the Israeli regime’s crimes and its “racist and illegal” policies on the Palestinian people and said Tel Aviv committed war crimes and violated international humanitarian principles during its last year’s war on the Gaza Strip.

“This regime should be accountable for its deeds, but no international measure has been carried out yet against this regime,” the Iranian envoy said.

The Tel Aviv regime started its latest aggression against the Gaza Strip in early July 2014. The war, which lasted for 50 days, claimed the lives of over 2,130 Palestinians, including many children and women, and injured some 11,000 others.

Khoshroo further emphasized that the Security Council should not remain inactive over “this crisis which has endangered peace and security in the Middle East.”

He urged the 15-member body to prepare the ground for establishing lasting and fair peace in Palestine in accordance with the council’s duties which have also been envisaged in the UN Charter.

The Gaza Strip has been under a crippling Israeli siege since 2007 which has cut off the Palestinian territory from the outside world and led to economic and humanitarian crises in the densely-populated enclave.

The Israeli regime is also pressing ahead with its illegal settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories despite a global outcry.

Most countries and international organizations regard Israeli settlements as illegal since the territories were captured by the regime in a 1967 war and are thus subject to the Geneva Conventions, which forbid construction on occupied lands.