Iran Asks for Comprehensive Convention against Terrorism

As a country that has always been the target of terrorist attacks, Iran condemns the inauspicious phenomenon of terrorism in any form, including state-sponsored terrorism, Dehqani said, addressing a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting dedicated to terrorism and transnational crimes.

The diplomat voiced Tehran’s determination to fight terrorism, and urged the international community to develop comprehensive international conventions against the phenomenon.

Referring to terrorist groups which are conducting terrorist activities in the name of Islam, Dehqani said groups such as Al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, and the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant (ISIL) have nothing to do with Islam.

“Today, these terrorist groups have become monsters that even threaten their own creators,” Iranian envoy said, adding that the first effective step against terrorism is to cut their aids and supports.

In reaction to the Israeli envoy’s accusations against Iran for supporting Hezbollah, Dehqani underscored that Hezbollah is a part of the government structure in Lebanon and has members in the government and parliament.

He also called Israel a main sponsor of terrorism and said Tel Aviv's criminal policies have created space for the activities of terrorist groups like the ISIL and Al-Qaeda in the region.

The ISIL is a militant group in Iraq and Syria believed to be supported by the West and some regional Arab countries. The terrorist group claims as an independent state the territory of Iraq and Syria, with implied future claims intended over more of the Levant, including Lebanon, occupied Palestine, Jordan, Cyprus, and Southern Turkey.

The ISIL terrorist group made swift advances in northern and western Iraq over the summer, after capturing large swaths of northern Syria.