Tehran Mocks Anti-ISIL Front Without Damascus

Local Editor

Tehran ridiculed an international conference on the ISIL threat that opened in Paris on Monday, insisting the terrorist group cannot be defeated without the support Damascus.

"The best way of fighting ISIL and terrorism in the region is to help and strengthen the Iraqi and Syrian governments, which have been engaged in a serious struggle against terrorism," deputy foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian told a visiting French lawmaker.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran has not been waiting for the formation of an international coalition -- it has been carrying out its obligations," he told foreign affairs committee chairwoman Patricia Adam, the ISNA news agency reported.

The deputy foreign minister is the latest in a string of Iranian officials to criticize US efforts to wage war against the extremists.

Iran reiterated that it was Gulf Arab and US support for the armed groups to overthrow the Syrian regime since 2011 that paved the way for the rise of ISIL.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team