Zarif Reiterates Tehran’s Support for Baghdad against ISIL

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif underlined that the Islamic Republic is determined to back neighboring Iraq in the fight against the ISIL terrorist group.

Speaking at a meeting with Head of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI) Ammar al-Hakim in Tehran on Tuesday, Zarif said that the promotion of relations with Baghdad has always been a priority for Tehran.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran supports the Iraqi government’s campaign against DAESH (ISIL), which aims to undermine Iraq’s security and unity,” he noted.
The Iranian foreign minister further said that during his recent tour of regional countries, including Lebanon and Syria, he held talks with senior officials of the two countries to find solutions to the ongoing crises in the region, including terrorism.
Hakim, for his part, said Iraqis have made major strides in fighting against the ISIL militants by using the guidelines of the religious leadership.
Iraq has been facing the growing threat of terrorism, mainly posed by the ISIL terrorist group, which is believed to be supported by the West and some regional Arab countries.
The ISIL Takfiri group has been committing heinous crimes against all ethnic and religious groups, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, Christians, Izadi Kurds and others in Iraq, Syria and several other countries.
The militants made swift advances in much of northern and western Iraq over the last summer, after capturing large swaths of northern Syria.
However, a combination of concentrated attacks by the Iraqi military and the volunteer forces, who rushed to take arms after top Iraqi cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani issued a fatwa calling for fight against the militants, have blunted the edge of the ISIL offensive.