MOSCOW, September 11 (RIA Novosti) - Tehran expressed doubts that the members of an emerging international coalition truly intend to fight radical Islamists in Syria and Iraq, Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported Thursday, citing Iranian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham.
“There are serious ambiguities in the real intention of an emerging so-called international coalition against the terrorist group of Daesh (also known as ISIS),” Afkham was quoted as saying by the agency.
She added that certain coalition members provided financial and technical support to the terrorists in Iraq and Syria. At the same time, other members proved unable to carry the responsibility put on them by the international community when it came to Iraq and Syria.
The comments by Afkham come as US Secretary of State John Kerry is visiting the Middle Eastern in an attempt to encourage the creation and maintenance of an international coalition to fight terrorism, particularly, the Islamic State. On Wednesday, Kerry visited Baghdad where he met with the new Iraqi authorities and spoke of the reforms needed for the Iraqi Army's success in fighting IS militants.
Unveiling his strategy to defeat Islamic State militants late on Wednesday, US President Barack Obama announced that the United States would lead a coalition aiming to roll back the terrorist threat and destroy the jihadist group altogether.
The IS, also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) or the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), is a radical Sunni group, which has been fighting the Syrian government since 2012. In June, it started launching attacks in the northern and western regions of Iraq, announcing the establishment of a caliphate on all the territories under its control.
