Iranian President Calls US-Led Anti-Terror Coalition "A Joke"
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iran's President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday said sponsors of terrorism cannot fight the terrorists they created themselves, and stressed that it is upon regional countries to combat terrorism.
"Terrorism in the region is a risk that the entire region should help eliminate," President Rouhani said in a joint press conference with his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Masum in Tehran.
Referring to the so-called US-led coalition formed against Takfiri terrorists, Rouhani dismissed their claims of battling the extremists, reiterating they themselves have created the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) terrorist group.
History would remember the "ridiculous joke" that certain countries fund and arm terrorist groups, and then claim that they have formed a coalition to bomb the same terrorists, the Iranian president stated.
Rouhani further expressed concern over the ongoing war waged by Saudi Arabia against Yemen, saying that the situation in the Arab country has turned into a "humanitarian catastrophe".
"The poor and oppressed people (of Yemen) have been put under continued attacks by the aggressors for near two months," he stressed, warning that the injured and the homeless people in Yemen are in dire need of treatment and help.
"We should first treat the injured. We should help the people of Yemen find life and peace, and then prepare the ground for negotiation among Yemeni groups in light of a comprehensive ceasefire," Rouhani added.
The Saudi war on Yemen, which began on March 26, has killed more than 3,500 people and left some 6,200 others injured.
The Saudi-led coalition, which seeks to restore power to the fugitive former President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, includes eight other Arab states and is receiving logistical support from the US, Britain and France.
On Thursday, Saudi Arabia announced a five-day 'humanitarian' ceasefire, to which Ansarullah movement and the Yemeni army consented. The ceasefire has started since Tuesday night.