29 September 2014
President Hassan Rouhani of Iran: West’s ‘strategic blunders’ aided rise of IS
The New York Times reports that President Hassan Rouhani of Iran delivered a searing indictment of Western and Arab states in his speech to the UN, blaming them for sowing the seeds of extremism in the Middle East with ‘strategic blunders’ that have given rise to the Islamic State and other violent jihadist groups.
‘Certain intelligence agencies have put blades in the hands of madmen, who now spare no one’, Mr. Rouhani said, adding that ‘all those who have played a role in founding and supporting these terror groups must acknowledge their errors’ and apologise.
He denied that Iran sought to control other nations in the region, calling that belief ‘delusional Iranophobia’, and reminded the world that Iran was among the first countries to assist Iraq in June, when IS fighters invaded from neighboring Syria. He said the extremist group and its affiliates, which have drawn recruits from around the world, do not represent the true teachings of Islam.
Source: The New York Times | Iran’s President Says West’s ‘Blunders’ Aided Rise of Islamic State