Tasnim – Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani allayed a lawmaker’s concern about the country’s decision to join the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC), stressing that Iran draws a line between anti-colonialist and terrorist groups.

Iran maintains that groups fighting against colonialism, like Hezbollah and Hamas, are not terrorists, despite the US allegations, Larijani said in an open session of the Parliament on Wednesday, responding to an objection raised by a lawmaker to Iran’s accession to the UNTOC.

In his objection, the parliamentarian voiced concern that Iran’s decision to join the UNTOC contradicts the constitutional article rejecting hegemony and forbidding any commitment to hegemonic states, like the US.

Iran dismisses the US listing of Hamas and Hezbollah as terrorist groups, in the same way that it rejects the sanctions imposed on it, Larijani said.

UNTOC is a UN-sponsored treaty against transnational organized crime, adopted by a resolution of the UN General Assembly in November 2000.

The convention is open for signature by all UN member states and by regional economic integration organizations, provided that at least one member state of such organization has signed the convention.