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Recent US remarks regarding the allged Iranian involvement in the deaths of at least 608 US service members are an attempt “to invent another pretext to justify a rapid escalation in relations with Iran”, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mariya Zakharova said during a press briefing on April 4.
“I was surprised to read the startling, as I see it, statement by Brian Hook, the US Special Representative for Iran, alleging that Iran is responsible for the deaths of 608 US service members in Iraq. We have not heard of any military clashes between Americans and Iranians in Iraq. And so our colleagues in Washington should provide an explanation as to what they specifically mean by Teheran’s involvement.
We do understand that anti-Iranian sentiment in Washington is running high but there should be at least some facts to support statements made and accountability for what is said,” the diplomat stressed.
She continued by saying that “Washington is trying to invent another pretext to justify a rapid escalation in relations with Iran if it deems it expedient”. Zakharova warned Washington against “such steps because they are fraught with catastrophic consequences for stability in the Middle East, which is in disarray even without it.”
“Getting back to Hook’s statement, I would like to ask what the United States was doing in Iraq anyway? Why did they invade the country, essentially destroying it, in 2003? The US occupation led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, most of whom were civilians. I would like to stress that there is no exact figure. Nobody has counted the civilian population killed there. There was a separate set of statistics for troops.
For example, we remember the video of 2007 that shows Blackwater private security company personnel shooting unarmed people with a machinegun in Bagdad. Who will answer for those victims? But they must be counted first.
And who will answer for the killing of 290 passengers of the Iranian plane shot down by a missile launched from a US cruiser in the Persian Gulf in 1988? Would Mr Hook like to speak on this subject? Has anybody in Washington apologised for all those victims?“, she added.
The diplomat added that there is no secret that “it was the US invasion in Iraq that resulted in the emergence of ISIS.”
“It brought additional suffering to the people of Iraq and neighboring Syria as well as to many other countries. Moreover, it created additional risks to global security because ISIS militants have dispersed all around the world now, and yet Western countries have reported that ISIS has been destroyed. Maybe they meant in Syria only? Yet, they are also still there, unfortunately. We see their crimes all over the world.
There should be no doubts that the US intervention in Iraq will remain in history as a grave violation of international law and, in fact, a criminal act. We advise the United States to stop seeking pretexts for new conflicts, increasing suffering all around the world with its aggressive policy,” Zakharova stated.
On April 2, Advisor to the Secretary of State Brian Hook said that Iran is responsible for the deaths of at least 608 US service members in Iraq in the period from 2003 to 2011. Besides this Hook came with a wide list of accusations blaiming and shaming Iran for its “meddling” in affairs of Middle Eastern states.
While these remarks added nothing new to the US stance towards Iran, they openly showed that Washington is not interested in a de-escalation of relations with the Middle Eastern country.
Isn’t the 608 deaths pretty much the combined total of all of the Shiite militias in Iraq while the rest of the deaths were caused by Sunni and Iraq military?
If so then that would put lying up to a new level because it would be as if the Shiites were incapable of finding an AK47 on their own while the Sunnis somehow managed to work their magic without Iranian support.
at least from russia you get a perspective on the entire charade being performed by moronistan (aka usa), with fatso and bedbugcrazy bolton to ever evil abrams and then donny the dunce, all part of a corrupt and criminally insane junta (goebbels, goehring, bohrmann, himmler and others spring to mind).
so to put it in perspective, 608 fully equipped soldiers out of moronistan or 17 pct of all soldiers from moronistan killed in iraq means that about 3500 soldiers from moronistan died in iraq, which should be compared to the many millions iraqis that died when the wrecking machine called moronistan went into action.
3500 soldiers, mostly undereducated red neck hillbilly types from the fly over states and we shan’t forget to mention the depleted uranium the wrecking machine saw fit to use and which still kills and causes birth of severely deformed babies, and that is what the idiot Hook doesn’t say anything about -may he rot in hell and drink some water contaminated by depleted uranium. but first of all, hang him high.
President Trump dropped his cheeseburger today, high ranking US intelligence officials are unsure if Russia or Iran were responsible for the Presidents clumsiness. A secret court hearing will decide who is the guilty party.
The US along with Russia and the UK invaded Iran in the 2nd World War. Ultimately an artificial famine was induced into the Iranian population in which hundreds of thousands of Iranians were genocided by the anti-theist invading nations. Until the US-UK-Russia make reparations to the Iranians, not one of these bigot nations has any room to talk against Iran ever! http://ihr.org/sites/default/files/RevisedBillboardResized.jpg
Iran was neutral in both world wars and despite that, both times was invaded. In WW1 by Britain, Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire and in WW2 by the Britain, USA and USSR. That’s what you get for being militarily weak and sitting on natural wealth and strategic geography. 1 year After the war, British and American occupiers left but the Soviets remained and tried to separate Azerbaijan (now Western Azerbaijan, Eastern Azerbaijan, Ardabil) and Kurdistan (now Kurdistan, Kermanshah and Elam) provinces. 2 puppet republics declared independence but after the Red Army left, thanks to Iran’s army and people those provinces returned to the homeland and the puppets fled to USSR. That’s the starting point of Marxist-Leninist Kurdish separatist movements.
Although the second world war took a heavy toll in Iran, it was nothing compared to the artificial famine of world war 1 by the British. Close to 10,000,000 people perished from hunger. Like Ireland and India, Iran too was rich in food and agriculture but the invaders took all the food at gun point, and sent it abroad and burnt the things they couldn’t take.
Now we can’t buy the arms we need, thanks to the UNSC resolutions (even our “friends” voted for the embargo) and now they target our domestic means of defence and deterrence. I guess they missed the good ol’ days of Qajars.
That being said, I thank the Russian foreign ministry for their stance in regard to this ridiculous claim by the US and reminding the world about Iran Air flight 655.
Thanks for that very interesting information. All baseless accusations, attacks and sanctions against Iran are crimes. I stand with Iran.
US deep state is caught in a series of increasing escalations, and it cannot get out. Totally out of control. Like an addict, gimme more of that! Satanist blood-sacrifices.