TEHRAN, July 2 (UPI) -- U.S. intelligence officials say Iran is arming guerrillas in Afghanistan, Iraq and other restive Arab countries, The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday.
Forensic evidence from attack sites in the various countries indicate improvised rocket-assisted munitions, or IRAMS, were manufactured in Iran. The weapons are rocket-powered and can be launched from a "safe" distance from the backs of pick-up trucks, the report said.
Maj. Gen. James Buchanan, the top U.S. military spokesman in Iraq, told the Journal it's anticipated the use of the Iranian IRAMs will mount as Washington has announced troop reductions in Afghanistan and Iraq.
"I think we are likely to see these Iranian-backed groups continue to maintain high attack levels," he said adding the arms influx was seen as a propaganda opportunity for various factions in Iraq.
"We believe the militias see themselves as in competition with each other," Buchanan said. "They want to claim credit for making us leave Iraq."
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told the newspaper the U.S. claims of Iranian arms backing were unfounded.
"They are better off going home and sorting out their own domestic problems," he said.
