TEHRAN – Ali Shamkhani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), said on Thursday that the Iranian people’s legal rights as well as their interests “are not negotiable”.

The comments by Shamkhani came one day after Iran started injecting uranium gas into centrifuges at the Fordow nuclear plant in response to the abrogation of the 2015 nuclear deal by the U.S. and a failure by the European Union to honor its obligation for economic and financial cooperation with Iran in accordance with the multilateral agreement.
 
“If the U.S. and European countries continue the current method with the hope that Iran retreats, they will definitely regret it,” Shamkhani said, Mehr reported.

He also said the United States is seeking to weaken the determination of independent countries through maximum pressure policy in order to bring about their collapse.

The top security official denounced U.S. plots against Middle Eastern countries, saying the new “scenario” against Iraq will fail like that of the Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group.

He said Washington and its allies have been taking advantage of rightful economic and social demands by anti-government protesters in Iraq and Lebanon in a bid to create insecurity and instability in both countries.

“Based on a deep understanding of the people and the unparalleled role of the religious leadership in Iraq, the scenario by the U.S. and its regional puppets will fail like the Daesh sedition,” Press TV quoted Shamkhani as saying.

Iraq has been recently grappling with anti-government protests in several cities.

The rallies have, however, turned violent on several occasions, with some rioters vandalizing public property and opening fire on protesters during the mayhem.

While recognizing people’s right to peaceful rallies, the Iraqi officials have warned against violence and attempts by outsiders to take advantage of the chaotic situation.

The turmoil comes nearly two years after Iraq declared victory over Daesh.

Daesh had unleashed a campaign of death and destruction in Iraq in 2014, overrunning vast swathes in lightning attacks.

Iraqi army soldiers and allied fighters launched operations to eliminate the terror outfit and ultimately managed to liberate their entire homeland from the Takfiri group in 2017.

MH/PA