BICOM

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, yesterday launched a scathing criticism of efforts by Britain, France and Germany to limit the Iranian ballistic missile programme.

US President Donald Trump has said that the US will withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement with Iran unless progress is made on the issue of ballistic missiles by 12 May.  Several European countries have since been working with Iran and the US to address the criticisms of the nuclear deal and reach a compromise on Iran’s ballistic missile programme.

However, Khamenei yesterday hit back at the suggestion, saying: “European countries come to Tehran and say we want to negotiate with Iran over its presence in the region. It is none of your business. It is our region. Why are you here?”

According to retired Syrian Brigadier General Zaher al-Sakat, Iran has manufactured short-to-medium-range missiles with chemical warheads in Syria. Sakat was responsible for developing the Syrian army’s chemical weapons but defected in 2013 after refusing to use them on civilians and now heads a centre monitoring the use of chemical weapons.

Sakat also claims that a significant proportion of the Syrian stockpile of chemical weapons, concealed from Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) inspectors, was given to Hezbollah and that Iran continues to be the main supplier of chemical weapons to the Assad regime.

In a related development, a spokesperson for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) Andrea Tenenti revealed that Israel and Lebanon have been holding talks to resolve disagreements over border issues almost daily.

Lebanon claims that the wall Israel is building on the border is being constructed on Lebanese territory, but Tenenti has said that “there is a will to keep this dialogue open… The reality on the ground is different and there is no appetite for instability or for war. It is important to keep in mind that things along the Blue Line are in general very sensitive. Anything could, if it is not addressed immediately, potentially spark into something bigger and increase tension,” he warned. Israeli officials insist that the wall is being built on the Israeli side of the border.