France, Germany, UK 'irresponsibly' blame Iran: FM

NEW YORK

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Tuesday called the U.K., France and Germany “ irresponsible” for blaming his country for the attacks earlier this month on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities.

“It was the most irresponsible statement that I have ever seen,” Zarif said following a meeting of Turkey, Russia and Iran’s foreign ministers at UN headquarters.

Zarif stressed that the three governments blamed Iran since they could not find anyone else to blame.

On Monday, France, Germany and the U.K. issued a joint statement blaming Iran for the Sept. 14 attacks.

Drones hit two major oil facilities run by state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco in the north of Saudi Arabia. Yemen’s Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for the act.

Since 2015, the Saudi-led coalition has been fighting the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen. Thousands of Yemenis have been killed and the country has been pushed to the brink of famine.

In recent months, Houthis, whose mid- and long-range ballistic missiles are usually intercepted by Saudi air defense systems, have targeted certain strategic parts of Saudi Arabia with armed drones.

*Writing by Gozde Bayar