The photo shows militants of the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) gathering at an undisclosed location in Nineveh Province, northern Iraq, on June 11, 2014.[/caption]Tehran, June 17, IRNA - Iranian lawmaker Mohammad Saleh Jokar, a member of the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, described the ISIL as a sinister phenomenon which has perpetrated many atrocities and is responsible for appalling terrorist activities in Syria and Iraq.
Jokar made the remarks in an interview with the English-language paper ?Iran Daily?, published Tuesday, adding that despite its inhumane measures and acts of terror, the Syrian government flushed the ISIL out in many flashpoints and battlefield across the war-stricken country.
We are witnessing that this terrorist group has managed to make several gains in Iraq in the past few days and seize several areas and cities, including Mosul, the MP said.
According to Jokar, ISIL, whose members are militants from Arab and European countries has received financial assistance of $4 billion from Arab states such as Saudi Arabia.
Referring to Irans readiness to assist the Iraqi government in its battle against extremist Sunni insurgents, the legislator noted the help will be limited to intelligence assistance.
At the present time, theres no urgency for sending Iranian forces to Iraq to help resolve the ISIL crisis because the Iraqi nation and government are able to drive out this terrorist group of 5,000 or 6,000 militants from their country, though the central government has so far failed to tackle the crisis due to political rivalry, the lawmaker pointed out.
Seyyed Hossein Naqavi Hosseini, Jokars colleague in the same parliamentary committee, said the ISILs advance stems from the negligence of the Iraqi government and parliament, and since they have been newly formed, they failed to take necessary action against the insurgent group.
He added, however, Baghdad will be able to stop the ISIL in the coming days and will completely drive them out of the country within 3 or 4 months.
Naqavi Hosseini contended that the United States sent the ISIL to Syria and then to Iraq and now, ironically, condemns the militant group for its recent crimes in Iraq.
By IRNA
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