Iran rejects US charge of aiding Iraqi insurgents

Aug 6, 2008, 20:19 GMT

New York - Iran on Wednesday rejected charges made by the United States that it supported the insurgent war against US forces in Iraq.

The Iranian mission to the UN issued a statement rejecting the charge by US Deputy Ambassador Alejandro Wolff that its government contributed to the insurgent war and undermined peace efforts by the Bagdhad regime.

'The US government unwarrantedly insists on its unacceptable behavior in scapegoating others, including Iran, for its own wrong policies in Iraq in order to distract attention from the sources of US failures in that country,' Iranian Ambassador Mehdi Danesh Yazdi said.

Wolff was making an annual report to the UN Security Council on the status of the US-led multinational force operating in Iraq. In addition to Iran, he also accused Syria of allowing insurgents to transit into Iraq through its borders.

'During the recent operations in Basra, Sadr City and Maysan, Iraqi troops uncovered convincing evidence that Iranian lethal aid has continued to flow into Iraq,' he said.

Wolff said insurgents retreated to Iran as a sanctuary, which contradicted Tehran's statements that it did not harbour them.