Egyptian president criticises Syria at Tehran meeting

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has said it is an "ethical duty" to support the Syrian people against the "oppressive regime" in Damascus.

His speech at the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Tehran on Thursday prompted a walkout by the Syrians.

"Our solidarity with the struggle of the Syrian people against an oppressive regime that has lost its legitimacy is an ethical duty as it is a political and strategic necessity," Morsi said.

"We all have to announce our full solidarity with the struggle of those seeking freedom and justice in Syria, and translate this sympathy into a clear political vision that supports a peaceful transition to a democratic system of rule that reflects the demands of the Syrian people for freedom."

His comments sparked a walkout by the Syrian delegation.

Syria's Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said Mursi's speech "incites continued bloodshed in Syria".

Egypt has been holding the rotating NAM presidency and Mursi was handing the duty over to Iran during his visit.

He used his speech to tell delegates of the 120-member body: "Our solidarity with the struggle of the Syrian people against an oppressive regime that has lost its legitimacy is an ethical duty, as it is a political and strategic necessity.

He compared the anti-government movement in Syria to the Palestinians, saying they were both "actively seeking freedom, dignity and human justice", and said Egypt was "ready to work with all to stop the bloodshed".

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who is attending the summit, said Syria was facing a long-term civil war, and warned that "those who provide arms to either side in Syria are contributing to the misery".

"The situation cannot be resolved with the blood and the bodies of more than 18,000 people and counting. There should be no more bullets and bombs. I urge all parties in the strongest possible terms to stop the violence now," he said.

Earlier Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, opened the summit by attacking the "overt dictatorship" of the UN Security Council in a speech.

"The UN Security Council has an irrational, unjust and utterly undemocratic structure, and this is an overt dictatorship," he said.

Iran is in a showdown with the UN over its disputed nuclear programme, which has resulted in four sets of Security Council resolutions imposing sanctions on it for pursuing uranium enrichment.

Khamenei charged that "the control room of the world [the Security Council] is under the control of the dictatorship of some Western countries" - implying the permanent council members France, Britain and US.

State television showed Ban looking nonplussed as Khamenei delivered his speech.

The NAM has long championed a reform of the UN to take power away from the Security Council and bolster the say of the General Assembly, where its members are better represented.

Khamenei's criticism of the UN's top table followed a meeting he had with Ban on Wednesday in which the UN leader bluntly told Iran to take "concrete" steps to ease the showdown over the nuclear issue.