Iran Condemns Use Of Chemical Weapons, Rules Out US Attack

Tehran, Aug 27, IRNA – Iran condemned the using of chemical weapons in Syria, and considered the possibility of a US military attack against Syria under the prevailing conditions very weak. Speaking with IRNA, Mohammad Javad Zarif said in response to a question on the US claim over global consensus against Syria, “No such consensus exists and the truth is that the westerners and the United States are trying to present an unreal image of the situation to the world, he added. The veteran Iranian diplomat added that Iran is a pioneer of the campaign against chemical weapons, because we have been the victims of these weapons, adding, “When the others talk about the chemical weapons not knowing what they really are.” “But when we talk about the chemical weapons we feel the pain of their usage with our flesh, our skin, and our bones, and thoroughly feel the peoples intimidation due to their usage, because our people and our civilians have been the victims of the usage of chemical weapons, he added. Zarif reiterated that these days we hear regretful news coming from the United States that confirm one more time that although the US government knew that Iraq was using chemical weapons, it was still providing Baghdad with information that could be helpful in using them (during the Iran-Iraq war). The foreign minister added, “There were of course news on US cooperation with the Ba’athist regime of Saddam, which was beyond providing information for them, on providing chemical substances for Iraq by some western countries, which is why we would like to draw the world nations attention on which countries are today opposed to using chemical weapons, and which have been the victims of their usage.” He said that the world nations should know which countries are today after taking political advantage of the innocent civilian victims of the usage of the chemical weapons. President Rohani’s cabinet’s foreign minister added, “We also wish the world nations to pay attention that those who sued to remain silent on the usage of chemical weapons formerly, or even supported the regime that used them and provided weapons for it to massacre the civilians in Halabja, are not competent ethically for judging the others.” Zarif expressed hope that the UN inspectors would specify the situation, saying, “As the UN official Mr. Jeffery Feltman said, it is not the duty of the UN inspectors to identify the side that has used the chemical weapons, but only to make clear whether the weapons have been used, or not and to provide sufficient information in that respect for the international community.” He said that Iran had from the very beginning encouraged Syria to cooperate with the UN inspectors. The Iranian top diplomat said that although the dimensions of this inhumane crime are great, no document on their usage by Syria have been presented yet, and the prevailing documents even denoted that they might be used by the others, including the foreign backed Takfiri forces. Zarif said, “I consider it a remote possibility that the US would lack the required wisdom and enter the course of another new war in the region with all its perilous aspects.” Expressing deep sorrow about the prevailing conditions in Syria, he said, “Today it is important to identify the used of the chemical weapons there.” Zarif advised the West to think twice before flickering the flames of war that would lead to getting killed of lots of more innocent people, inflict billions of more material damages, merely due to the political concerns of a number of countries. He said that the westerners and some Arab countries must be held accountable and tell everyone how the extremists gained strength in Syria, just as Saddam, the Taliban, and al-Qaeda were all once supported by the West, and later created troubles for them./end