Iran not to be deceived by West’s regional game: Shamkhani

A senior Iranian official says the Islamic Republic will not be deceived by the West’s plot and its “regional rivalry game.”

“The issue of regional rivalry is a colonial thought…which is not accepted by the logic of Islam,” Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani (SNSC) said on Friday.

He added that the destruction of economic infrastructure in Yemen and the prevention of aid delivery to the war-wracked country run counter to Islamic ethics.

The Muslim world would never tolerate “the unwise decisions” by Saudi Arabia’s US-backed ruling family and will hold them to account over their “crimes,” the SNSC secretary said.

Shamkhani further noted that “the alliance” of America and its partners with the al-Qaeda terrorist group in Yemen to counter “the popular will” of the country will remain as a “stain” in history.

Saudi Arabia started its military aggression against Yemen on March 26 – without a UN mandate – in a bid to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and to restore power to the country’s fugitive former president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, who is a staunch ally of Riyadh.

The Saudis claim the airstrikes only target military positions. However, reports show civilians and infrastructure in civilian areas are being attacked.

In a recent report, Human Rights Watch said evidence shows Saudi Arabia has used cluster munitions in the northern province of Sa’ada in recent weeks.

Over 1,200 people, including many women and children, have lost their lives in the Saudi airstrikes since March 26.