Tehran Friday Prayer Leader:

US suffering from strategic confusion ‎

Hujjat al-Islam ‎Haj-Ali-Akbari slammed the administration of the United States over its recent ‎move to impose sanctions on Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad Zarif and said ‎Washington is suffering from “strategic confusion.”‎

News ID: 446289

Date: 02 August 2019 - 22:27

RNA – Addressing a congregation of worshippers in Tehran on Friday, Hujjat al-Islam ‎‎Mohammad-Javad Haj-Ali-Akbari said, “It is an honour for Mr. Zarif and the Foreign Ministry ‎that the Americans have sanctioned him but this method is indicative of the collapse of the ‎ruling system of the United States.”‎

‎“The move by the government of the United States also shows that the discourse of ‎resistance [neither negotiation nor war] has been effective,” the cleric added.‎

It also indicates that the United States policy of “begging” has got nowhere and that ‎Washington has been “suffering from strategic confusion,” he stated.‎

On July 31st, the United States Department of State said Washington sanctioned Mr. Zarif for ‎acting on behalf of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Sayyed Ali ‎Khamenei. The president of the United States had issued an executive order on June 24, ‎imposing sanctions on the Supreme Leader and his office and authorizing sanctions on ‎others associated with Ayatollah Khamenei.‎

The senior Iranian diplomat has dismissed the move by the United States, saying that being ‎designated by the United States would not affect him since he has ho properties outside ‎Iran.‎

‎“We know that calling for dialogue and peace is an existential threat to the B-Team. And ‎since the reason for designating me is my words, would ‘United States persons’ need an ‎OFAC license to ‘engage’ with me by reading my writings or listening to interviews?” Mr. Zarif ‎said in a Twitter post.‎

The remarks came against the backdrop of increased tensions between Iran and the United ‎States after the Islamic Republic shot down an advanced United States spy drone over its ‎territorial waters.‎

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said on June 20 that a United States spy drone ‎that violated the Iranian territorial airspace in the early hours of the day was shot down by ‎the IRGC Aerospace Force’s air defence unit near the Kuh-e-Mobarak region in the southern ‎province of Hormozgan.‎

The intruding drone was reportedly shot by Iran’s homegrown air defence missile system ‎‎“Khordad-3.”‎

Later on the same day, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, said he had called ‎off a retaliatory attack on a number of targets in Iran and said that he was ready to speak ‎with Iranian leaders and come to an understanding that would allow the country to improve ‎its economic prospects. “What I’d like to see with Iran, I’d like to see them call me.”‎

‎“I look forward to the day where we can actually help Iran. We’re not looking to hurt Iran,” ‎Trump added.‎

However, on June 24, Trump announced new sanctions against top Iranian officials, including ‎the office of Ayatollah Khamenei, Iran’s foreign minister, and senior commanders of the ‎IRGC. ‎

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