Nikki Haley of the United States has pushed the United Nations Security Council to focus on the “illegal and dangerous behavior” by Iran and Lebanese group Hezbollah in the Middle East, an accusation that Iran dismissed as “misleading propaganda.”
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U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley has told the 15-member council that its monthly meetings on the Middle East – traditionally focused on Israel and the Palestinians, Syria and Lebanon – has regularly turned into “Israel-bashing sessions.”
“Iran is using Hezbollah to advance its regional aspirations. They are working together to expand extremist ideologies in the Middle East,” she said. “That is a threat that should be dominating our discussion at the Security Council.”
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has accused Iran of “alarming ongoing provocations” to destabilize the countries in the Middle East, as the Trump administration has launched a review of its policy towards Tehran, including a 2015 nuclear deal.
“Today we heard unsubstantiated allegations against my country which I categorically reject as misleading propaganda campaigning against Iran and its role in the region,” Iran’s U.N. Ambassador Gholamali Khoshroo said in the council.
The United States, which is the president of the council for April, has tried to focus the meeting on Iran, which it accused of aiding Hezbollah in Syria, deadly militia in Iraq and Houthi rebels in Yemen.
The United States has asked the countries to consider, “Who are the regional players that most benefit from chaos in the region, and what are the connections between terrorist groups and these states?”
Several council members has broadened their statements during the meeting to discuss other conflicts in the Middle East, but few mentioned Iran.
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Haley said in the council: “The incredibly destructive nature of Iranian and Hezbollah activities throughout the Middle East demands much more of our attention. It should become this council’s priority in the region.”
Haley, who has became the U.S. ambassador in late January, is a member of the Cabinet of President Donald Trump, who has taken a hard line on Iran during his campaign for the White House.
By Premji
