Iran won't help U.S.-led alliance
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September 26, 2001
TEHRAN (Reuters)
Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei says his country will provide no help to the United States in any attack on Afghanistan after Washington accused his country of practising terrorism.
"Iran will provide no help to America and its allies...in an attack on suffering, neighbouring, Muslim Afghanistan," Khamenei told a group of war veterans and their families. Excerpts of his speech were carried on state television on Wednesday.
"We do not believe America is sincere enough to lead an international move against terrorism. America has its hands deep in blood for all the crimes committed by the Zionist regime," he added, referring to Israel.
He was speaking two days after U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said Iran should halt its support for what he called terrorism if it wanted to be a part of a U.S.-led coalition hunting down the perpetrators of September 11 attacks on the United States.
"You can't pick your favourite terrorist," Powell told Reuters on Monday in Washington. "If you (Iran) want to be part of this small coalition then you have to change some of the patterns of the past supporting terrorism."
Khamenei has previously told the United States its problems would mount if it attacked Afghanistan, where Washington's prime suspect for the suicide attacks, Osama bin Laden, is based.
Khamenei made a direct reference to Powell's "arrogant" remarks: "American officials say 'there are no good or bad terrorists', but they (the Americans) themselves have double-standards on terrorism."
"They expect the entire world to help them because their interests demand. Do you ever care about others' interests," he said to chants of "death of America" and "death to Israel".
"These are the characteristics that make America so hated in the world."
But Khamenei condemned terrorism, calling for a "serious fight and a holy war to combat terrorism".
"It is not that any one who is with you is against terrorism and those who are against you are for it," he said. "We are neither with you nor with the terrorists."
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/010926/80/c5dvi.html
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Copyright, Reuters, 2001.
For fair use only.[ SEPTEMBER HOMEPAGE ]
