Iran’s Parliament to Discuss Aspects of Basra Consulate Incident
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Commission would hold a meeting on a Friday mob attack on the country’s consulate in Iraq’s southern city of Basra, an MP said.
Rapporteur of the parliamentary commission told Tasnim on Saturday that its very next meeting will delve into the Friday attack, during which a mob of Iraqi protestors stormed into the Iranian Consulate in Basra, destroyed the diplomatic mission’s properties, took down the flag of Iran and torched the building.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry has condemned the “brutal” attack on the consulate, warning about overt and covert efforts to undermine the friendly relations between the Iraqi and Iranian nations and governments.
On Friday evening, the Foreign Ministry summoned the Iraqi ambassador to Tehran in protest at the attack and the Iraqi police’s inaction despite the recent threats against the Iranian diplomatic mission.
Eleven people have been reported killed in the violent protests against corruption and lack of basic services in Basra over the past week.
The Iranian consulate’s building was not the first to be set on fire. The angry demonstrators had earlier set government buildings ablaze as well. The buildings included the headquarters of the local government, the ruling Dawa Party, the Supreme Islamic Council and the Badr Organization.
