Kurdish terrorist groups backed by US, Israel to foment chaos in Iran: Analyst

By Ali Ghorban Bagheri

Kurdish terrorist groups holed up in the border region with Iran in the Kurdistan region of Iraq enjoy the backing of the US and Israel and pose a direct threat to Iran’s internal security, says an analyst.

Ali Fadlallah, Advisor to the Iraqi Center for Media Studies and Development, in an interview with the Press TV website, elaborated on the security agreement between Tehran and Baghdad on disarming and relocating of Kurdish terrorist groups based in northern Iraq.

He said their presence in the region dates back four decades and have survived with foreign support.

Last month, Iran and Iraq reached a security agreement that requires the Iraqi authorities to disarm and relocate the Kurdish terrorist groups by September 19.

In recent weeks, a series of meetings have been witnessed between Iranian and Iraqi officials at various levels to follow up on the implementation of the security agreement.

On Wednesday, Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein arrived in Tehran and held talks with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, which was followed by a joint press conference.

He said Iraq is committed to the security pact to disarm terrorist groups based in the Kurdistan region and announced that they will be transferred to camps under the supervision of the United Nations.

He made clear that the Iraqi constitution does not allow any group to use Iraqi territory to attack other countries and added that Iraqi and Kurdish authorities are cooperating on the matter.

Speaking to the Press TV website, Fadlallah said the United States and the Israeli regime have played a key role in inciting and supporting terrorism inside Iran to foment chaos in the country.

These foreign entities, he asserted, have been backing these terrorist groups with logistical and intelligence support for the same purpose – to carry out terrorist acts deep inside Iran's soil.

Fazlullah said that naturally, such measures endanger Iraq's national security because they make the country’s territory a source of threat to the territory of the neighboring country, i.e. Iran.

Explainer: Why is Iran calling for disarming of Kurdish terrorists by Sept.19?

Only a week is left until September 19 when Iraq has pledged to disarm and relocate anti-Iran terrorist groups in the Kurdistan Region in line with a security agreement.

Therefore, following the formation of the new Iraqi government, there was good cooperation between the two countries with the aim of destroying these groups and expelling them from the borders of Iran, he told the Press TV website.

Fazlullah stated that one of the other goals of this coordination between Iran and Iraq is to reduce the danger posed by these groups by disarming them and preventing them from posing security risks, as the Islamic Republic of Iran contributes a lot to Iraq in the fight against terrorism, especially the Daesh terrorist group, and also provides great logistical and advisory support to Iraq.

He emphasized that the Iraqi government is serious about this coordination to end the activities of these groups, noting that the statements of the Iranian foreign minister in this regard indicate that Iraq is serious about fighting these groups and will do this in coordination with officials in Baghdad and Erbil.

The Iraqi analyst echoed the words of the Iraqi foreign minister, saying the use of the country’s soil for attacks on neighboring countries goes against the Iraqi constitution.

Iraqi foreign minister’s visit to Tehran comes two days after Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani said the ultimatum given to Iraq to disarm anti-Iran terrorist groups will not be extended.

“Iran’s stance is completely clear. According to the agreement reached with the Iraqi government, the final deadline for the disarmament of the terrorist and separatist forces in Iraq’s Kurdistan region ends on September 19 and that deadline will not be extended in any way,” Kan’ani said in a weekly press briefing in Tehran on Monday.

Also on Monday, Amir-Abdollahian warned that the presence of terrorists in the Iraqi Kurdistan region runs counter to the friendly ties between the two nations and contravenes the Constitution of Iraq.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.ir