Ahmadinejad Offers Solution To End Terrorism
Sep 1, 2010 5 Comments ›› Pat Dollard
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has called for the trial and punishment of the invaders of Iraq, saying such a move would end terrorism.
“Those behind such a wrong decision, which led to the killing of hundreds of thousands of innocent people, must be punished,” Ahmadinejad said in an interview with al-Alam news channel on Wednesday.
“Punishing those criminals will uproot terrorism and instability,” he said, arguing that “the terrorists are using the presence of US forces and their crimes as an excuse [to carry out attacks].”
Ahmadinejad added that US President Barack Obama should “avoid meddling in Iraq’s internal affairs, withdraw all American troops from the country, respect Iraq’s independence and punish the criminals.”
He said that a tribunal must be set up to punish the Iraq War criminals like the one set up following World War II.
The Iranian president welcomed the withdrawal of foreign soldiers from Iraq, but questioned US decision to keep 50,000 soldiers in the country.
Obama announced on Tuesday that the American combat mission in Iraq has ended.
Despite the end of mission, the US will keep 50,000 soldiers in the country to “advise and support” the Iraqi army, US officials say.
Washington has also unveiled plans to increase the number of American security contractors, tasked with securing American diplomats and diplomatic facilities, including the US embassy.
The United States led the invasion of Iraq in 2003 under the allegation that the country was in possession of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs).
It was later found that not only Iraq was not in possession of WMDs, but also that the officials who rallied support for the invasion had been informed about the nonexistence of such weapons.
Over one million Iraqis lost their lives during seven years of US-led war in the country while many others were injured, rendered homeless or fled the country.
The war inflicted heavy damage on Iraqi civilians, economy and environment, the extent of which is yet to be assessed.
