Governor accuses Iran of meddling in Iraq

Iran Focus: Baghdad, Feb. 21 – The governor of the Iraqi province of Wasit accused Tehran of meddling in Iraqi affairs, disrupting the peace, and creating instability and havoc in his province, which shares a common border with the Islamic Republic. “The Iranian ambassador in Baghdad came to meet me and called for friendly relations. I told him, the people of Al-Kut (Wasit’s capital) are suffering from Iranian agents who are involved in acts of theft, narcotics distribution, smuggling, and assassination of personalities”, he said, in an interview with the Baghdad journal Al-Shahid Al-Mostaqel on Friday. Iran Focus

Baghdad, Feb. 21 – The governor of the Iraqi province of Wasit accused Tehran of meddling in Iraqi affairs, disrupting the peace, and creating instability and havoc in his province, which shares a common border with the Islamic Republic.

“The Iranian ambassador in Baghdad came to meet me and called for friendly relations. I told him, the people of Al-Kut (Wasit’s capital) are suffering from Iranian agents who are involved in acts of theft, narcotics distribution, smuggling, and assassination of personalities”, he said, in an interview with the Baghdad journal Al-Shahid Al-Mostaqel on Friday.

In response to a question on Iranian charities suspected to be a front for Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security, the governor said, “The Iranian ambassador in Baghdad also asked for my permission for Iranian charities and foundations to be able to operate in our towns, but I strongly rejected such an idea since we have intelligence that these centres quickly turn into places for meddling and instigating trouble, and we have not had a good experience with such centres”.

The governor pointed out that a network of Iranian agents has been carrying out activities aimed at subverting the newly-formed government apparatus.