Iranian Commander: Iraq Insurgency Masterminded by US
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - A senior Iranian military commander blamed a surge of terrorist attacks and armed insurgency in Iraq on the world powers, spearheaded by the US.
“The presence of terrorists in Iraq should be regarded as part of a comprehensive plot orchestrated by the world renowned powers and their proxies, and the US spearheads those powers,” Deputy Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Brigadier General Massoud Jazayeri said in an interview with Al-Alam news network on Saturday.
Citing a “direct link” between terrorism and the US governing body, the commander explained that the US actions are aimed at implementing Israeli plots and policies.
In relevant comments on Saturday, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei said the ongoing turmoil in Iraq is a war “between terrorism and counter-terrorism, a war between proponents of objectives of the US and the West and supporters of the independence of nations, and a war between humanity and barbarism and savageness.”
Imam Khamenei also explained that the arrogant powers are trying to incite Shiite-Sunni strife in order to ease their concerns about the Islamic Awakening movement which has already swept across the Middle East and North Africa since 2011.
The Leader’s remarks come amid escalating security in Iraq following lightning attacks by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) terrorists.
ISIL militants have stormed largely unopposed across much of northern Iraq, capturing four cities, including Mosul and Tikrit, seizing several border crossings with Jordan and Syria and advancing to within some 100km of the capital Baghdad.
The terrorists’ attacks have reportedly forced more than half a million people in Nineveh Province to flee their homes.
Following Iraqi top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani’s religious decree (Fatwa) which called on Iraqis to take up arms against terrorists, nearly 1.5 million Iraqis have volunteered to join battles against the al-Qaeda-linked militants. The volunteers consist of people from all walks of life including retired officers.
