Iran-Backed Hezbollah Cells Preparing to Launch Future Attacks in Europe, US

Iran-backed Hezbollah cells are readying themselves to conduct future terrorist attacks in Europe and the US, a retired British Army officer told The Algemeiner on Thursday.

Colonel Richard Kemp -- a former commander of UK forces in Afghanistan -- was responding to a report in the Washington Free Beacon, citing an Iranian regime-aligned media outlet, that an Iranian military official claimed the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) was dispatching operatives to infiltrate the West.

Despite last year's nuclear deal reached between the Islamic Republic and six world powers, Iran's "hatred for America remains a pillar of the ayatollahs' foreign policy," Kemp said. 

"They use their proxy -- the terrorist group Hezbollah -- to project power overseas. There are today Hezbollah cells both in Europe and the US. These elements are trained, supported and controlled by the IRGC."

Furthermore, Kemp explained, while "it is not clear exactly where the division lies between direct IRGC action overseas and action by Hezbollah and other terrorist proxies," what is certain is that "either directly or indirectly, the IRGC has been preparing and will continue to prepare for terrorist attacks in the US and elsewhere in the West."

In the past, Iran is believed to have used Hezbollah to strike Israeli and Jewish targets around the globe -- including in Burgas, Bulgaria in 2012 and in Argentina in 1992 and 1994.

Also, American officials said the IRGC was behind a thwarted 2011 plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the US at a Washington, DC restaurant.

Iran, Kemp emphasized, "is the number one state supporter of terrorism in the world today. And the US-led nuclear deal has released funds that are being used by Iran in its support for terrorism against the state of Israel and for its imperial aggression in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Lebanon."

Moreover, Kemp noted, "The West, and the US in particular, do their best to turn a blind eye to this very real threat, because their leaders are afraid to take action. 

The reason? It is the same as the reason the US leadership ignores acts of Iranian aggression against their warships in the Gulf. 

It is because they are terrified that Iran will pull out of the nuclear deal and humiliate President Barack Obama."

Originally published at Algemeiner.com - reposted with permission