U.S. asserts Iran stirring up trouble in Iraq, but evidence less certain
CAIRO, Egypt (AP) _ Top U.S. officials have made strong charges in recent weeks that Iran is directly stirring up trouble in Iraq. But inside Iraq, it's hard to see any change and some American officials in Baghdad say privately the evidence is not that clear.
Most experts on Iran say there is no question that Iran is funneling support to certain Shiite political parties in Iraq, groups it long supported when they were fighting Saddam Hussein.
Ironically, most of that aid appears to go to the same Shiite parties in Iraq that the American government supports and that are part of the government. The more militant Shiite groups are equally critical of U.S. and Iranian influence in the country.
Nevertheless, the anti-Iran rhetoric from Washington has escalated sharply.
Brig. Gen. Michael Barbero, the deputy director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Pentagon reporters on Aug. 23 that there was "irrefutable" evidence that Iran was training, funding and equipping Shiite militants in Iraq.
Barbero spoke of a ``policy of the central government in Iran'' to destabilize Iraq and increase the violence there. In the past, U.S. and British officials have alluded to Iranian support for armed groups but always refrained from accusing the Tehran government directly.
The only specifics Barbero cited were allegations _ made before _ that the Iranians were providing insurgents with technology to build more powerful roadside bombs, including armor-piercing ``shaped charges'' developed by Iranian-backed Hezbollah guerrillas in south Lebanon.
In background briefings, however, senior U.S. officials in Baghdad have been far less certain about the nature of Iranian involvement. They say that technology to build ``shaped charges'' in roadside bombs is now widely available across the Middle East.
Read the rest at KOTV 6
Most experts on Iran say there is no question that Iran is funneling support to certain Shiite political parties in Iraq, groups it long supported when they were fighting Saddam Hussein.
Ironically, most of that aid appears to go to the same Shiite parties in Iraq that the American government supports and that are part of the government. The more militant Shiite groups are equally critical of U.S. and Iranian influence in the country.
Nevertheless, the anti-Iran rhetoric from Washington has escalated sharply.
Brig. Gen. Michael Barbero, the deputy director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Pentagon reporters on Aug. 23 that there was "irrefutable" evidence that Iran was training, funding and equipping Shiite militants in Iraq.
Barbero spoke of a ``policy of the central government in Iran'' to destabilize Iraq and increase the violence there. In the past, U.S. and British officials have alluded to Iranian support for armed groups but always refrained from accusing the Tehran government directly.
The only specifics Barbero cited were allegations _ made before _ that the Iranians were providing insurgents with technology to build more powerful roadside bombs, including armor-piercing ``shaped charges'' developed by Iranian-backed Hezbollah guerrillas in south Lebanon.
In background briefings, however, senior U.S. officials in Baghdad have been far less certain about the nature of Iranian involvement. They say that technology to build ``shaped charges'' in roadside bombs is now widely available across the Middle East.
Read the rest at KOTV 6
posted by iraqnam at 1:23 PM
<< Home