Raw Story
Tuesday December 18, 2007

A Pentagon report to be released Tuesday will accuse Iran of continuing to funnel weapons and technology to fighters in neighboring Iraq even as it cites lower violence overall, US media said.

Fewer fatalities among US and Iraqi troops and wider installation of basic services such as electricity are to be among the positives cited by the US military assessment of Iraq, the Wall Street Journal said citing officials familiar with the report to be given to Congress.

But even with the positives, the report lays attacks in Iraq at the foot of Iranian elements — despite the fact that the use of explosively formed penetrators weapons (EFPs) are down. Some EFPs found in Iraq over the past year have carried Iranian signatures, according to media reports and intelligence officials who spoke to RAW STORY in recent months.

“Military officials say they are trying to reconcile the drop in EFP attacks with other evidence suggesting that Iran is continuing other clandestine activities inside Iraq,” the Journal says. “The Iranian question is an increasingly central concern for U.S. military commanders and senior policy makers who are trying to decide whether to broaden the Bush administration’s tentative diplomatic outreach to Tehran in the hope of winning further Iranian cooperation in stabilizing Iraq.”

The report “also will reiterate US accusations that Iran is sending sophisticated explosives, rockets and mortars into Iraq,” the newspaper said.

“It’s not arguing that Iran’s behavior is getting worse, but it’s also not arguing that Iran’s behavior is getting better,” the report quoted one US officer as saying.

The assessment was also to highlight political instability and the difficulties faced by the government of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

US commanders have in the past accused Iran of providing covert support to Iraq extremists, but amid a sharp reduction in violence in recent weeks they have said the alleged support appears to have ended.

Iran has consistently denied providing Iraqi militias with funding or training.

A report on foreign fighters in Iraq from last month also reveals that few Iranians are crossing the border between the two countries to fight US troops. Of more than 700 foreign fighters in the country, just 11 came from Iran, according to data captured at an insurgent camp, the New York Times, reported in November.