TEHRAN (Tasnim) � Iran�s deputy ambassador to the United Nations, speaking on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), said the UN Security Council�s failure to address the Israeli atrocities has emboldened the regime to continue its crimes against Palestinians.

Addressing a meeting of the UNSC in New York on Monday, Gholam Hossein Dehqani denounced heinous crimes committed by the Zionist regime of Israel against the Palestinian people, such as its continued blockade on the Gaza Strip, the destruction of Palestinians� homes and building Israeli settlements in the occupied territories.

�The UNSC has showed that it is incapable of resolving the crisis (Israeli crimes) and the Zionist regime is continuing its hegemonic policies without the fear of any kind of punishment,� the Iranian diplomat said.

He further emphasized that the member states of the NAM believe that the Israeli occupation and the UN�s failure to punish the regime, which are the root cause of Palestinians� sufferings and many other crises in the Middle East region, should come to an end.

The UNSC debate was held as Palestine pushed for a UN resolution demanding that Israel halt the construction of settlements in the Palestinian territories.

The draft resolution is being negotiated with Arab countries and has yet to be formally circulated to the council, but the United States -- which vetoed a similar resolution in 2011 -- has said it �will consider all options� over the Israeli-Palestinian effort.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon earlier said in an address that Israeli demolitions of Palestinian buildings in the West Bank were continuing at �an alarming rate�, reiterating that settlements are illegal.

By Tasnim News Agency