Iran says none of the 9/11 attackers were Iranian and accuses Washington of using the anniversary to justify military action against Tehran.
TEHRAN, IRAN — WEB DESK: Iran has rejected what it described as a US attempt to invoke the anniversary of the September 11 attacks to justify military action against Tehran, accusing Washington of applying a double standard to terrorism and political violence.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said the narrative advanced by the US secretary of war was “riddled with fundamental contradictions.”
Baqaei argued that the United States could not claim exclusive authority to define terrorism while carrying out what he described as aggression, assassinations and attacks that resulted in civilian casualties.
Iran says 9/11 attackers were not Iranian
Baqaei stressed that none of the perpetrators of the September 11 attacks were Iranian, rejecting any attempt to associate Iran with the attacks.
He also accused the United States of having armed, organised or otherwise supported groups involved in conflicts during the decades preceding the September 11 attacks.
The Iranian official’s comments came as the anniversary of the attacks renewed debate over US counterterrorism policy and its military campaigns in the Middle East and beyond.
Tehran criticises US-led war on terror
Baqaei also criticised the US-led “war on terror”, pointing to the subsequent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
He said those conflicts resulted in years of war, occupation, civilian deaths and widespread destruction.
Iran has frequently criticised US military interventions in the region, arguing that Washington’s counterterrorism policies have contributed to instability and civilian suffering.
Iran calls war justification ‘utterly absurd’
Against that backdrop, Baqaei said invoking the September 11 anniversary to justify what he described as a “reckless and unlawful war” against Iran was “utterly absurd”.
He accused the United States of conducting what he called a “criminal war” involving the assassination of officials of a sovereign state and attacks that killed civilians, including women and children.
Baqaei argued that such actions could not be justified by presenting them as counterterrorism measures.
Iran’s comments add to the broader dispute between Tehran and Washington over the justification, legality and consequences of military action, with both sides presenting sharply different accounts of the conflict.
