TEHRAN — The United States is not a good yardstick for measuring anti-terrorism efforts, Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi has said, hinting at Washington’s history of founding, funding and arming different terrorist groups.

“With a history of founding, funding & arming different terrorist groups, a record of state terrorism, and its outright support for another terrorist regime, US is not a good yardstick for measuring anti-terrorism efforts,” Mousavi said in a Thursday tweet.

It came days after the U.S. Department of State notified Congress that Iran, North Korea, Syria, Venezuela, and Cuba were certified under Section 40A(a) of the Arms Export Control Act as “not cooperating fully” with U.S. counterterrorism efforts in 2019.  

The statement prohibited the sale or license for export of defense articles and services and notified the U.S. public and international community that these countries are not fully cooperating with U.S. counterterrorism efforts.

The United States labels resistance forces such as Hezbollah and Hamas that resist the Israeli occupation of their lands as a terrorist. Likewise, it brands Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) that have been fighting terrorist groups such as Daesh and also seek an exit of U.S. forces from their country as a terrorist.
 
“In 2019, Iran continued to be the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism, supporting Hizballah, Palestinian terrorist groups, and other terrorist groups operating throughout the Middle East,” according to the statement.

The U.S. State Department added, “In 2019, Iran maintained its support for various Iraqi Shia terrorist groups, including Kata’ib Hizballah (KH), Harakat al-Nujaba (HAN), and Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq (AAH). Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, has been directly involved in terrorist plotting and has killed U.S. citizens. The IRGC – most prominently through its Qods Force – has the greatest role among Iranian regime actors in directing and carrying out a global terrorist campaign.”

MH/PA