Minister: Iran’s Borders Fully Secure

Full preparedness and security prevail in border areas and there are no threats against the Iranian borders,” Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli told reporters in Tehran on Monday. He made the comments in response to a question about any possible threat posed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) terrorist group fighting in neighboring Iraq. In relevant comments in late July, Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan reassured that the country’s border areas, including the western regions neighboring Iraq, enjoy a high level of security. The Iranian Armed Forces are keeping a close watch on the country’s border areas and take whatever measure necessary to secure the frontiers, he said at the time. The ISIL is a militant group in Iraq and Syria believed to be supported by the West and some regional Arab countries. The terrorist group claims as an independent state the territory of Iraq and Syria, with implied future claims intended over more of the Levant, including Lebanon, occupied Palestine, Jordan, Cyprus, and Southern Turkey.