A bill has been submitted to the Iranian parliament by President Hassan Rouhani which aims to join the International Convention for Combating the Financing of Terrorism. The UN treaty, which was adopted in 1999, criminalizes terrorist financing and promotes collaboration in order to prevent such acts from being funded and to investigate any financing of terrorism.
The bill was recommended by the Foreign Ministry and was approved by the President’s Cabinet on October 29. President Rouhani has forwarded it to Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani, and parliamentarians are to review it soon, Financial Tribune reports.
The introduction of the bill says that the necessity for Iran to become a member of the Convention rises from the fact that the country has been “a target of terrorist attacks mounted by anti-revolutionary groups and entities.” It adds that the Islamic Republic of Iran will collaborate with other countries and will provide the legal instruments required “to prevent the financing of terrorism if it becomes a member of the Convention.”
On the other hand, Iran itself has often been accused of promoting terrorism and committing such acts. Bahrain claimed an explosion at its main pipeline on Friday was a result of sabotage on Iran’s part, calling it “a dangerous act of terrorism.”
Bahrain’s Interior Minister also claimed other perpetual terrorist acts in the country have been “carried out through direct contacts and instructions from Iran.”