U.S. May Be Provoking Clashes In Iraq: FM Spokesman

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U.S. May Be Provoking Clashes In Iraq: FM Spokesman

Tehran Times | August 8 2004

TEHRAN (MNA) -- Expressing regret over the resurgence of deadly clashes in the holy city of Najaf and other Iraqi cities in recent days, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Sunday that the United States may be behind these clashes as Iraq prepares to regain sovereignty.

Concern over the rapid transfer of power to the Iraqi people may have motivated the U.S. to create tension in order to justify its continued military presence in Iraq, Hamid-Reza Asefi told reporters at his weekly press briefing.

Asefi also said that the U.S. brutality against the Iraqi people is both unacceptable and unjustified.

The desecration of holy sites is unacceptable to Muslims and non-Muslims, and resorting to force and terror will only exacerbate the situation, he added.

Meanwhile, a UN spokesman said Secretary General Kofi Annan is "extremely concerned" about fighting in Iraq over the past several days, particularly in the holy city of Najaf, where more than 300 have been reported killed, many of them civilians, AFP reported. "He is particularly troubled by the high toll of dead and wounded, including civilian casualties.”

The Iraqi Health Ministry said on Sunday that at least 43 people had been killed in fighting between U.S. forces and Shia militiamen in Baghdad and the holy city of Najaf over the previous 24 hours.

Mahdi Army militiamen loyal to radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr have been battling U.S. forces since Thursday. Residents said the flashpoints in Baghdad and the holy city were relatively calm on Sunday morning.