WANA (Mar 26) – Amir Saeid Iravani, Iran’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, has sent a letter to the UN Security Council and the UN Secretary-General, strongly rejecting a recent report by the UN sanctions monitoring team that alleged the presence of al-Qaeda members in Iran.

 

The Islamic Republic of Iran described these claims as “baseless, biased, and lacking any credible evidence,” emphasizing that such accusations are solely based on the allegations of a specific country without substantiating proof.

 

Referring to Iran’s track record in combatting terrorist groups such as ISIS and al-Qaeda on the battlefield, Iravani asserted that the Islamic Republic has never been a safe haven for terrorists and is, in fact, a victim of state-sponsored terrorism.

 

The letter also dismissed attempts to link Iran to al-Qaeda’s activities in Syria, Lebanon, Afghanistan, and Yemen as “entirely unfounded.” Citing recent Ansarullah operations against al-Qaeda in Yemen and the direct threats posed by al-Qaeda against Ansarullah forces, Iran’s UN envoy underscored that, contrary to the report’s claims, there is a clear operational conflict between these two groups.

 

Iravani further highlighted the rising wave of terrorist operations in the region and the role of certain governments in facilitating and exploiting terrorism. He called for a reassessment of the UN monitoring team’s unprofessional and politically motivated approach and urged the UN Security Council’s sanctions committee to adopt an impartial stance and focus on real threats to regional and global security.

 

Concluding the letter, the Islamic Republic of Iran reaffirmed its commitment to regional and international cooperation in combating terrorism, including through the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and called for intelligence-sharing efforts to enhance global counterterrorism measures.