Iran’s deputy foreign minister for Arab and African affairs said Monday that the Obama administration is trying to “manage” the Islamic State group instead of seeking its destruction.
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian told Iran’s Tasnim News Agency that “what we are seeing and what regional intelligence services are saying indicate that America has formed a coalition to fight against [Islamic State], but the actions of this country is purely to manage [Islamic State],” Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty reported Tuesday.
Mr. Amir-Abdollahian also referenced an October 2014 incident in which the U.S. accidentally dropped heavy weapons and foods meant for Iraqi security forces on land controlled by the Sunni radical terror group.
Iran’s conspiratorial charges came on the same day that the commander of Iran’s Quds Force, General Qasem Soleimani, returned to Iraq to oversee Shia militias fighting the Islamic State group.
Defense News reported Monday that Gen. Soleimani is directing an attack on the Sunni-controlled city of Tikrit that took the U.S. by surprise.
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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