Iran, IFRC call for closer coop. on humanitarian aid across region

TEHRAN, Apr. 17 (MNA) – Iran and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) have voiced readiness to expand cooperation in providing humanitarian aid across the region. Vice-President Es’hagh Jahangiri held a meeting with the President of IFRC, Francesco Rocca, in Tehran on Monday, during which he voiced concern over the dire situation in Syria, Afghanistan and Yemen, and voiced readiness on behalf of the Iranian Red Crescent Society to increase cooperation with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in providing humanitarian aid to Yemen and other regional countries going through conflicts. He noted that the presence of American troops in Afghanistan and the escalation of war and bloodshed in that country have brought an influx of Afghan refugees to Iran, about three million people. “Regrettably, major powers, instead of helping to settle the Syrian situation through dialogs, attack the Syrian government and army under various pretexts, which has undermined the capability of Assad’s government to counter terrorist groups with full force,” Jahangiri said. Jahangiri went on to stress that Iran, as one of the first victims of chemical attacks in the region, condemns the use of chemical weapons by any country; “In the case of Syria, legal mechanisms must have been observed before taking measures that would have further complicated the situation,” Jahangiri added, implicitly referring to the airstrikes carried out by the US, UK and France against Syria under the pretext of the alleged chemical attack on Douma. The IRFC president, for his part, thanked Iran's government and the Iranian Red Crescent Society for their humanitarian activities in Niger, Côte d'Ivoire, Syria and other countries in the region. “I believe that killing children in Yemen is inhumane and utterly unacceptable,” he said. “Unfortunately, such conflicts are the result of power games among major countries, which strikes the harshest blows to the most vulnerable segment of society,” he added. Francesco Rocca further voiced keen interest in having closer cooperation with the Iranian Red Crescent Society.