U.S. Envoy: Iran Supporting Iraq Insurgents

The pretense has been shattered. The U.S. is explicitly accusing Iran of supplying money and training to anti-U.S. fighters in Iraq.

Complicating matters: America is in the midst of trying to negotiate with Iran over its nuclear ambitions. What a hornet’s nest.

The Washington Post:

BAGHDAD, March 23—Iran is publicly professing its support for Iraq’s stalemated political process while its military and intelligence services back outlawed militias and insurgent groups, U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said Thursday.

Iranian agents train and arm Shiite Muslim militias such as the Mahdi Army, linked to one of Iraq’s most powerful clerics, Khalilzad said, and also work closely with Sunni Arab-led insurgent forces including Ansar al-Sunna, blamed for dozens of deadly attacks on Iraqi and American soldiers and Shiite civilians.

“Our judgment is that training and supplying, direct or indirect, takes place, and that there is also provision of financial resources to people, to militias, and that there is presence of people associated with Revolutionary Guard and with MOIS,” the Afghan-born Khalilzad said, referring to Iran’s main military force and its Ministry of Intelligence and Security.

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