Alwaght- Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has condemned the US president’s comments on Tehran terror attacks as “repugnant”.
Zarif's condemnation came after Donald Trump pointed the finger of blame at Iran itself, in a reaction which was met with criticism even at home.
“Repugnant WH (White House) statement & Senate sanctions as Iranians counter terror backed by US clients. Iranian people reject such US claims of friendship,” Zarif tweeted on Thursday.
On Wednesday, Trump offered contradictory comments over the twin attacks in Tehran, which left at least 17 people dead and nearly 43 others injured. The American businessman, on the one hand offered solace and on the other blamed the victim for the deadly operation claimed by ISIS Takfiri terrorists. The US president pointed the finger at Tehran itself, arguing that victims are sponsors.
“We underscore that states that sponsor terrorism risk falling victim to the evil they promote,” claimed Trump.
The State Department had initially released a more benign statement on Wednesday, in the wake of the attacks in Iran’s Parliament (Majlis) and the mausoleum of the late founder of the Islamic Republic Imam Khomeini.
Meanwhile, Richard Haass, who was a former senior employee at the US State Department and is now the head of the Council on Foreign Relations, has criticized the White House statement regarding the terrorist attacks in Iran, pointing to a possible schism among the staffers who helped draft it.
“WH statement on Iran terror, which after condolences says Iran deserved it, is result of divided staff drafting w/o smart clear guidance,” Haass wrote on his Twitter page on Wednesday.
Also criticizing Trump’s stance on Tehran attacks was Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, who expressed surprise at the US president’s “sympathy/insult statement” in a Twitter post.
“Btwn inexplicable anti-Qatar rants & bizarre Iran sympathy/insult statement, Trump Middle East policy coming fully off the rails this week,” read the post.
