Iran Joins World Condemnation of US-British Attacks Against IraqIran on Monday lashed out at the Friday US-British air strikes against Iraq as "unacceptable," raising the voice of world condemnation of the overnight air raids.Addressing a press conference here, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi dismissed the raids as "one-sided and inexplicable." "We regret the carnage of innocent Iraqis and condemn it," he said. Meanwhile, Iran's radical daily Jomhuri Islami said that the military attacks proved new US President George W. Bush is following the same old way paved by his predecessors regarding the Persian Gulf situation, while turning a deaf ear to concerns of the international communities. The Persian-language daily pointed out that the US administration conducted its extraterritorial invasion under the pretext of "contributing to world peace," adding the White House " knows nothing about peace and security" and is a "shame" to the world society. US and British fighters bombed radar and military command centers near Baghdad late Friday, killing two civilians and injuring 20 others. The English-language Iran Daily in its perspective column on Monday slammed the attacks as an act of cowardice, since the Islamic world is fully aware of US military adventurism in the region aimed at promoting "Zionist (Israeli) interests." Washington's warning that it would take "appropriate action" if Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein produced weapons of mass destruction is "sheer hypocrisy," said the daily. The U.S.-British bombings are totally "unjustified," said the paper, warning that these are just attempts to deflect the world's attention away from the main issue in the Middle East, the intifada (uprising) in Palestinian territory. The daily said that US Secretary of State Colin Powell wants to make the world know in his upcoming visit to the region that it is Iraq, not Israel, that is a threat to the region. The daily warned Iraq's Arab neighbors that Powell is playing the "Iraq-threat" game to justify US military presence in the region so that the pro-West Arab regimes continue to purchase arms from America. It also noted that new US president further wants to send a message to the US military-industrial complex that his aggressive foreign policy will only enhance their profits. |
| People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ |