Iran tops US list of rogue nations

IRAN remained the most-active state sponsor of terrorism in 2002, the United States said yesterday as it made no changes to its list of rogue nations, holding it at seven.

Iran, as well as Cuba, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Sudan and Syria, were all renamed to the State Department’s annual blacklist, inclusion on which brings with it a variety of US sanctions, including bans on arms sales and economic measures.

The department’s yearly “Patterns of Global Terrorism” report noted marginal progress and statements made by some of the “state sponsors” but said they had not done enough to deserve being removed from the list.

The seven “did not take all the necessary actions to disassociate themselves fully from their ties to terrorism in 2002,” the report said.

“While some of these countries have taken steps to cooperate in the global war on terrorism, most have also continued the very actions that led them to be declared state sponsors,” it said.

The chief offender, as it has been for the past several years, was Iran, according to the report, which had the highest praise for Sudan’s cooperation in the war against terrorism.

“Iran remained the most active state sponsor of terrorism in 2002,” it said, accusing Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Ministry of Intelligence and Security of planning and supporting numerous terrorist attacks last year.

The Islamic republic also “continued to exhort a variety of groups that use terrorism to pursue their goals,” it said, naming them as anti-Israel organisations Hezbollah and the Palestinian entities Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC).

The report noted that Iran had shown some interest in helping the US-led war on terrorism launched after the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington but that its record was decidedly “mixed” in going after Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida network which is held responsible for the strikes.

“While it has detained and turned over to foreign governments a number of al-Qaida members, other al-Qaida members have found virtual safe haven there and may even be receiving protection from elements of the Iranian government,” it said.

Four nations on the list -- Cuba, Libya, Sudan and Syria -- have taken steps to cooperate with some aspects of the anti-terror war, but fell short in Washington’s eyes, according to the report.

“Although Cuba is a party to all 12 international counter terrorism conventions and protocols, and Sudan is a party to 11, both nations continued to provide support to designated foreign terrorist organisations, it said.

“Likewise, Syria and Libya have continually indicated that they wish to aid the United States in the conflict against terrorism and have curtailed their sponsorship activities,” the report said.

“Their cooperation remained deficient in other areas, however,” it stressed.

Cuba is accused of sought to frustrating Washington’s efforts to stamp out terrorism.

Libya has not entirely cut off links with suspected terrorist groups, the report alleges.

While North Korea has rejected international pressure to move against terrorist groups and their assets.