US president Donald Trump singled out Iran in a major speech on Islam yesterday, accusing the Shia country of fuelling the “fires of sectarian conflict and terror” in the Middle East.

Speaking a day after Iran re-elected the relatively moderate Hassan Rouhani as president, Mr Trump risked reigniting tensions with Tehran by accusing the country of bearing responsibility for instability in the region.

“From Lebanon to Iraq to Yemen, Iran funds, arms, and trains terrorists, militias, and other extremist groups that spread destruction and chaos across the region. For decades, Iran has fuelled the fires of sectarian conflict and terror,” Mr Trump said on his first speech on foreign soil since his election as president of the United States.

In a departure from his predecessor Barack Obama who negotiated a landmark nuclear deal with Iran, Mr Trump criticised the Iranian regime, accusing Tehran of offering a “safe harbor, financial backing, and the social standing needed” for terrorists. In particular, he criticized its role in the Syrian war where Iran is backing Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.

“Until the Iranian regime is willing to be a partner for peace, all nations of conscience must work together to isolate Iran, deny it funding for terrorism, and pray for the day when the Iranian people have the just and righteous government they deserve,” he said in a speech to the Arab Islamic American Summit.

Source » irishtimes