US re-designates Iran, Syria as state sponsor of terrorism

The US on Tuesday re-designated four countries – Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria – as state sponsor of terrorism, imposing a wide range of sanctions on them including arms embargo and ban on financial assistance.

“Designated as a State Sponsor of Terrorism in 1984, Iran remained an active state sponsor of terrorism in 2011 and increased its terrorist-related activity, likely in an effort to exploit the uncertain political conditions resulting from the Arab Spring, as well as in response to perceived increasing external pressure on Tehran,” the State Department said in its annual report on terrorism.

Iran is said continued to provide financial, material, and logistical support for terrorist and militant groups throughout the Middle East and Central Asia.

Iran was known to use the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) and terrorist insurgent groups to implement its foreign policy goals, provide cover for intelligence operations, and support terrorist and militant groups.

The IRGC-QF is the regime’s primary mechanism for cultivating and supporting terrorists abroad, it said.

Designated in 1979 as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, Syria continued its political support to a variety of terrorist groups affecting the stability of the region and beyond, even amid significant internal unrest, the report said.

“Syria provided political and weapons support to Hizballah in Lebanon and continued to allow Iran to resupply the terrorist organisation with weapons,” it said.