Zarif raps West over ISIL atrocities

“Why quite a sizeable number of individuals and groups espousing extremist ideologies and engaged in acts of brutal terror and heinous violence, in Europe and on a much bigger scale in Iraq and Syria, happen to be second generation citizens of “Western democracies?” Zarif asked while addressing a session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday.

“It is frightening that Da’esh (ISIL) terrorists, beheading innocent civilians, speak European languages with native accent. The high rate of terrorist recruitments signify a systematic failure, which has led to marginalization, alienation and disenfranchisement of individuals and groups born, raised and educated in “Western democracies,” he added.

He commended the UN agency for its effort to establish peace in the world, but criticized the international body and some other regional and western countries for politicizing all world issues and their double policies.

He added that such duplicitous approaches have stepped up the spread of acts of terrorism in the world.

The Iranian foreign minister also said Islamophobia is an insult to Muslim sanctities.

"We should thus join hands to contain, control and defeat Islamophobia as well as extremisms of other varieties," said the minister.
/SR