McCain was RIGHT about Al Qaida and Iran..NOT a mistatement

Iran harboring, training selected Al Qaida commanders

BAGHDAD -- Iraqi officials said the Teheran regime was harboring more than 100 Al Qaida senior operatives as part of an effort to destabilize Iraq.

Despite tensions with top Al Qaida leaders, they said Iran provides training, funding and medical treatment to Al Qaida fighters loyal to Teheran.

Iraqi soldiers walk past ammunition and arms on display which were captured from Shiite Muslim militants in the southern Iraqi city of Basra on May 04. (/File) AFP

"We have information about other terror groups such as Ansar Al Islam and Ansar Al Sunna that cross the borders between Iran, Iraq and Kurdistan that have contacts with these leaders," Iraqi National Security Adviser Muwafaq Al Rubei said.

Iraq's assertion was voiced amid Al Qaida criticism of Iran.

Al Qaida's No. 2 Ayman Zawahiri has accused Teheran of undermining the Islamic insurgency movement and denying Al Qaida's air suicide strikes in the United States in 2001.

"The purpose of this lie is clear that there are no heroes among the Sunnis who can hurt America as no-one else did in history," Zawahiri said.

But Al Rubei, reflecting what he said was intelligence assessments, said Teheran was harboring at least 100 Al Qaida members. He said many of the operatives stemmed from Algeria, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and Yemen.

"In Iran, there are many members of the terrorist organization, that come from Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, North Africa or Yemen," Al Rubei said in a series of interviews to the London-based media in late April.

Officials said some of the Al Qaida operatives were in Iranian custody. But they said others were allowed to communicate and plan attacks in Iraq.