Rigi arrest revealed West’s hypocrisy on terrorism

Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Mohammad-Najjar says the apprehension of the ringleader of the Jundallah terrorist group exposed the hypocrisy of the West on the issues of human rights and terrorism.

The arrest of Jundallah ringleader Abdolmalek Rigi revealed the emptiness of the claims of so-called human rights groups and showed the world who the real supporters of terrorism are, Mohammad-Najjar told senior security officials in Tehran on Saturday.

“The captured terrorist mentor of the Jundallah group, Abdolmalek Rigi, has confessed to receiving unlimited military assistance and funding to wage an insurgency against the Islamic Republic of Iran. Without the strong support of Western intelligence agencies, terrorism in the region would not have survived,” he added.

Mohammad-Najjar said, “Rigi’s arrest revealed the true colors of Western rights organizations. The enemies of Islam have resorted to sowing discord among Muslims as their main strategy to implement their fiendish plans. We must exercise the necessary alertness in this regard.”

On February 23, the leader of the Jundallah terrorist group was on a flight from the United Arab Emirates to Kyrgyzstan when he was tracked down by Iranian security forces.

Rigi and one of his deputies were captured after Iranian security forces forced their plane to land at an airport in the Persian Gulf city of Bandar Abbas.

Iranian security forces said he was at a US base in Afghanistan 24 hours before his capture.

According to some sources, Rigi had planned to meet US special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke at the Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan for talks on launching terrorist attacks in Iran.

The Iranian interior minister also emphasized the need for constant vigilance in regard to the plots hatched by the arch-foes of the Islamic Republic.

“Over the past three decades, the belligerent enemies of the nation have been looking for a golden opportunity to deal a blow to the Islamic system, but every time they have been driven to desperation thanks to the people’s astuteness,” he stated.

Mohammad-Najjar also said that Iran is currently at the peak of its power and prosperity and guaranteed that the country would continue on the path of progress.