Iran's Foreign Ministry: The Real Fathers of ISIS Exploit the Munich Incident

The spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry described the 'exploitation' by media from certain regional countries of the Iranian-German identity of the Munich shooter as 'psychological warfare.' According to the state news agency IRNA, Bahram Qasemi emphasized on Saturday night, July 24, that 'the real fathers of Al-Qaeda, ISIS, and the Taliban want to rely on such baseless accusations and statements to diminish their dark record.' He also criticized the media, 'especially regional media,' for focusing on the 'alleged' Iranian identity of the shooter and not addressing the essence of the incident. Mr. Qasemi stated, 'This is a psychological war being waged by the media of certain specific countries, which we call the real fathers of Al-Qaeda, ISIS, and the Taliban, and they want to rely on such accusations and baseless statements to diminish their dark record.' He added, 'Of course, no one will believe these accusations, and the status of the Iranian community worldwide is completely clear and evident, and Iranians are among the best segments in foreign societies.' Iranian officials name Saudi Arabia as the 'main supporter' of terrorism in the region, including support for the Islamic State (ISIS). The spokesperson of Iran's Foreign Ministry also responded to the announcement of the Iranian-German identity of the Munich shooter, stating that this individual was 'German and born in Munich,' and some media had reported on the shooter's mixed heritage and psychological issues, of which they still do not have accurate information. The German Interior Minister announced that Ali Sanbali, the shooter who killed 9 people and injured 27 in Munich on Friday, was not known to the country's security services and there was no connection between him and international terrorism. Meanwhile, German police officials stated that he had been undergoing psychological treatment. However, according to reports, hours after the reports about the Iranian-German identity of this individual were published, many Twitter users from Gulf Arab countries posted anti-Iranian content. Meanwhile, the state newspaper Iran reported that these users were mostly from Saudi Arabia and were posting with hashtags like 'the perpetrator of the Munich attack is Iranian' and 'Iran has distorted the face of Islam.' The spokesperson of Iran's Foreign Ministry condemned the Munich incident and expressed condolences to the German people and government. In this context, the shooting at a shopping center in Munich, Germany, left at least 10 people dead. The Iranian-descended shooter in Munich 'has no connection to ISIS or the refugee issue.' Seven of the victims in the Munich shooting were teenagers and of foreign descent. The media response to the announcement of Ali Sanbali's identity highlights the changing dynamics of proxy wars and the conflict against the people in the streets of Iran.