ERBIL — The Iraqi Shi’ite State of Law Coalition has strongly condemned an alleged statement by the country’s Foreign Minister Mohammed al-Hakim who reportedly acknowledged the existence of Israel.

Hakim was quoted in some media reports earlier this week as saying that he believes the two-state solution was the way out of the crisis between Palestine and Israel. However, the Foreign Ministry soon after issued a clarification to refute the reports.

MP Khalaf Abdul-Samad, head of the State of Law Coalition bloc at the Iraqi parliament, said in a most recent reaction that Hakim’s remarks did not represent Iraq’s stance on the issue.

He called on Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi to take the necessary measures and dismiss the minister if the remarks were made on a personal account, or the Iraqi political factions should be provided with clarification if it was the government’s stance.

MP Hassan Shakir also slammed the statement and asked for serious measures to be taken against the minister.

The condemnations, however, came after the ministry’s clarification.

"Statements and news reports circulated by the media and social networking platforms on the foreign minister's statement on Iraq's stance toward the Palestinian issue and the two-state solution were recently issued. In this regard, we would like to show that what has been transmitted is [contradicting] the reality and is totally devoid of any truth," the ministry wrote in its statement earlier the week.

Bas News