US DoS Report Aims to Distract From 'US Role in Supporting' Terrorism – Tehran

The US State Department’s report on counterterrorism activities in 2016 is not trustworthy and represents a futile attempt to distract public attention from the US role in supporting terrorism, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, the US State Department released its annual terrorism report, claiming that the government of Iran has allegedly continued to be a major sponsor of terrorism in the region.

"This report lacks credibility and is a futile attempt of the United States to deflect international attention from the United States’ patronage and role in creating, promoting and supporting terrorist groups in the world, especially in the Middle East," Qassemi said in a statement released by the Ministry.

One of the reasons for the report being unfounded is that some of the main US allies in the region, which are the ideological birthplaces of most major terrorist groups and still continue to support terrorist organizations, were listed as US partners in the fight against terrorism, Qassemi added.

"This comes as, by the admission of many governments and international organizations, reports on Iran’s actions in fighting terrorism, including the imposition of triple international sanctions against terrorism, are not comparable with [the performance of] many of US allies in the region," the spokesman said.

The State Department’s report says that Iran supports Hezbollah which helps the Syrian army fight against Daesh, as well as Hamas and other groups in the Gaza Strip alongside various groups in Syria, Iraq and throughout the Middle East.