Iran Rejects US Accusations, Justifications for Closing Basra Consulate

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi said on Saturday that the Islamic Republic of Iran censures any attack on diplomats and diplomatic places.

“The ridiculous justification [provided by Americans] for the closure of the US Consulate General in Basra, which came after weeks of propaganda and false allegations against Iran and the Iraqi forces, is a suspicious move aimed at evading responsibility and pinning the blame on others,” noted Qassemi.

Such claims are made while there are numerous overt and covert indications that foreign agents were involved in a recent brutal attack on the Consulate General of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Basra, he noted.

It is clear that such childish justifications by the US are part of its adventurist policies and the White House’s plot to depict Iraq as an insecure country, he went on to say.

He also said the Americans raise such claims in a bid to put pressure on the Iraqi government, which is of course a gross and condemned move.

The US has announced it will close its consulate in Basra and evacuate its diplomats from there after what it called increasing threats from Iran.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo cited on Friday “increasing and specific threats and incitement to attack personnel and facilities” by Iran as the reasons for such a decision. He also warned Washington would “respond promptly and appropriately” to any such attack.