Israel main beneficiary of ISIL terrorism: Iranian diplomat

A senior Iranian diplomat says Israel is the main supporter and beneficiary of acts of terrorism by the ISIL terrorist group in the Middle East, urging unity among Muslim nations to secure the future of the region.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said on Wednesday that the Tel Aviv regime and the ISIL terrorist group are the two sides of the same coin, adding, “ The Zionist regime [of Israel] is the main sponsor and winner of the acts of terrorism and destruction by the ISIL terrorist group in the region.”

He further described “the destruction of the resistance front against the Zionist regime and the plundering of the wealth of Muslim countries” as the main mission of the terrorist and extremist groups in the region.

He added that if the Muslim countries are united, “terrorism and Zionism will have no place in the future of the region.”

Amir-Abdollahian further blamed the United States and the West for their insincerity in the fight against terrorism, and held them responsible for “the intensification of Israel’s crimes and worsening insecurity in the region.”

The top Iranian diplomat also pointed to Saudi Arabia’s aggression against Yemen, saying, “The belligerent attitude of Saudi Arabia, as a Muslim country, against Muslim Yemeni children and women is reminiscent of Zionists’ actions in [the war on the besieged] Gaza Strip and brings shame to the Islamic and Arab world.”

Israel launched a war on Gaza in early July 2014, killing over 2,130 Palestinians and injuring some 11,000 others.

He further called on Saudi Arabia to take measures to help “the security of the region and the unity of Islamic world, provide real support for the oppressed Palestinian people, and counter the crimes of the Zionist regime.”

Saudi Arabia has been pounding different areas in Yemen since March 26 without any authorization from the United Nations.

According to the UN, over 3,000 Yemenis have been killed and 14,000 more injured in over three months of conflict in the country. Local Yemeni sources, however, say more than 4,500 people have been killed in the Saudi strikes.

On July 7, Rupert Colville, the spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said 1,528 civilians had been killed and 3,605 others had suffered injuries in the conflict in Yemen since March 27.