ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Iran has become the "new home base" of al-Qaeda, said US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who called the relationship between Iran and the jihadist group an “unholy collusion”.
“Al-Qaeda has a new home base. It is the Islamic Republic of Iran”, Pompeo said at the National Press Club in Washington, DC on Tuesday.
US military operations against al-Qaeda after 9/11 led the group to “look for a safer haven”. Al-Qaeda redirected its command from Afghanistan and Pakistan, sites of frequent American operations, to Iran, Pompeo said.
After decades of positive relations between Iran and al-Qaeda, there was “a sea change” in 2015, the year that the Iran nuclear deal was being finalised, Pompeo said.
“Iran decided to allow al-Qaeda to establish a new operational headquarters, on the condition that al-Qaeda operatives abide by the regime’s rules governing al-Qaeda’s stay inside of the country.” Iran granted al-Qaeda operatives greater freedom of movement inside the country, safe havens, and logistical support including ID cards and travel documents, the Secretary of State alleged.
“Al-Qaeda has centralized its leadership inside of Tehran,” where it is “plotting attacks all across the world”, he said.
During his speech, Pompeo confirmed the killing of Abu Muhammad al-Masri, al-Qaeda’s second most senior leader, in Tehran last year.
The New York Times (NYT) reported in November 2020 that al-Masri was killed by Israeli agents in Tehran, at the behest of US officials. Masri’s killing had not been acknowledged by the US, Iran or Israel at the time.
The day after the release of the NYT report, Iran denied that al-Masri had been killed by Israeli agents, and foreign ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh denied any presence of al-Qaeda in Iran.
Al-Qaeda’s presence in Iran could also have other ramifications on international politics, Pompeo said.
“Who’s to say that this isn’t the next form of blackmail to pressure countries back into a nuclear deal?” he asked.
“The time is now to America and all nations to crush the al-Qaeda-Iran axis”.
The United Nations and other countries must follow US suit and sanction entities designated as associated with al-Qaeda, Pompeo said. He announced new sanctions against five people part of al-Qaeda or affiliated with the group – including three leaders of Kurdish al-Qaeda batallions.
“Today, I announced the designations of Iran-based al-Qaeda leaders Muhammad Abbatay also known as Abd al-Rahman al-Maghrebi, and Sultan Yusuf Hasan al-Arif… I also announced the designations of Ismail Fu’ad Rasul Ahmed, Fuad Ahmad Nuri Ali al-Shakhan, and Niamat Hama Rahim Hama Sharif as leaders of the al-Qaida Kurdish Battalions (AQKB),” a statement from Pompeo’s office read.
Related: Journey to jihad: Iran’s Sunni Kurds fighting a holy war in Idlib
Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif took to Twitter to dismiss Pompeo’s remarks.
“No one is fooled. All 9/11 terrorists came from @SecPompeo's favorite ME [Middle East] destinations; NONE from Iran,” Zarif said after Pompeo’s speech.
