Ayatollah Rafsanjani:Terrorism to backfire on supporters

Chairman of Iran’s Expediency Council Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has criticized certain governments for backing the ISIL Takfiri terrorist group in the region, saying the terrorists will eventually come back to hunt their supporters.

“Breeding terrorism is a fire that will engulf its breeders,” Rafsanjani said in meeting with visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in Tehran on Wednesday.

The Iranian official further warned against conspiracies hatched by certain regional and trans-regional governments aimed at disintegrating Iraq and underscored the necessity for the promotion of national unity in Iraq to counter the plots.

By strengthening its unity and relying on its domestic potential, especially volunteer forces, Iraq can decisively counter terrorism and weather the current difficult situation, Rafsanjani said.

He further said that those who oppose solidarity and unity in Iraq are the common enemies of all Iraqi ethnic groups, including Shias, Sunnis and Kurds.

Abadi, for his part, expressed gratitude to the Islamic Republic for supporting Baghdad in its fight against ISIL terrorists who are currently wreaking havoc on Iraq and Syria.

The heavily-armed Takfiri terrorists have been carrying out horrific acts of violence, including public decapitations, against all communities in the region.

Iranian officials have, on numerous occasions, stressed that Tehran will not interfere militarily in Iraq and Syria, but that it will continue to provide support for both countries against ISIL in the form of defense consultation and humanitarian aid.

In a separate meeting with Abadi on Wednesday, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani expressed hope that security and stability will be restored in Iraq within the shortest possible time.

“Given the great capability and potentialities of Iraq, by eliminating terrorist groups, security can be fully restored to the country within a short time span,” Shamkhani said.

The Iranian official said that the security of neighboring countries is intertwined, underlining that countering security threats necessitates collective efforts among the countries involved in crisis.

Abadi, in turn, called for the enhancement of cooperation and continuation of consultations between Tehran and Baghdad to adopt joint approaches in political, security and economic domains.