Iran refutes US allegation on missile supply to Yemeni Houthis

TEHRAN - Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Saturday dismissed as "baseless" the US allegations that Tehran supplies missiles to Yemeni Shiite Houthis, Press TV reported.

"In an attempt to cover up its presence in the region and its measures which can mostly amount to war crimes, the United States raises baseless allegations against the Islamic Republic of Iran by displaying a piece of metal," Zarif told reporters on Saturday.

On Thursday, the US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley appeared standing before parts of a ballistic missile that she claimed Iran delivered to Houthis, which was fired at Saudi Arabia's Riyadh airport last month.

Zarif said such claims aimed to deflect attention from US complicity in the crimes committed in the Middle East, particularly in Yemen, and from US President Donald Trump's "very dangerous move" to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Washington has made such allegations against Iran while it provided Saudi Arabia with cluster bombs that kill Yemeni civilians, and supported the Saudi's blockade on the impoverished country, Zarif was quoted as saying.

What is clear is that American bombs are being dropped on the Yemeni people and "this is a fact that no one can conceal," he added.

Also, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Brigadier General Massoud Jazayeri on Saturday denounced as "absurd" the remarks made by Haley about Iran's missile support for Yemen.

"This person's comments have their roots in her lack of understanding of military issues," Jazayeri said.

"If the Americans had been informed of the high level of the Yemeni resistance's missile technology, they would have refused to make such absurd comments," he was quoted as saying by Tasnim news agency.

The chief commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said in November that the Islamic republic provides "advisory assistance" for Yemeni Houthi militants.

Tehran has denied arming Iranian-allied Shiite Houthis against the Saudi-led coalition which seeks to restore President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who was ousted by Houthis in September 2014.

The Saudi-led coalition has said in a statement that Iran was to blame for a recent Yemeni missile strike on Riyadh, which Iran dismissed categorically.