TEHRAN, July 27 (UPI) -- Former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani says the United States seeks to control the Middle East by actions such as eliminating Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The Iranian News Agency reported Thursday that Rafsanjani, currently the chairman of Iran's Expediency Council, told former Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari the so-called U.S. efforts he described as the "Greater Middle East Plan" is "a plot to eliminate politicized Islam in the region."
Quoting his office, IRNA reported Rafsanjani told his visitor Hezbollah presence in Lebanon is a defensive one to resist "the Zionist invasion."
Rafsanjani also was quoted as saying Iraq's national reconciliation plan is a government effort to maintain tranquility in the country. He said Iraq's enemies are creating problems among ethnic and religious groups in the country to achieve their own interests.
