Iranian troops crossed borders in Diala – source

DIALA / IraqiNews.com: Iranian troops crossed into Iraqi territories and advanced for several meters after removing concrete barricades on the borders with Diala on Saturday, according to the assistant governor of the province. “The Iranian forces entered Iraqi territories from al-Munzheriya district, the area bordering Iran and belonging to Khanaqin district, (155 km) east of Baaquba city,” Hafez Abdulaziz told IraqiNews.com news agency. However, an official security source in the Diala Operations Command (DOC) denied the reports. “Security conditions n the borders are stable and there are no encroachments by the Iranian side on the Iraqi borders,” the security source told IraqiNews.com. Baaquba, the capital city of Diala province, lies 57 km northeast of Baghdad. An Iranian force had occupied the Fakka oilfield in Missan on December 18, 2009 and planted the Iranian flag there, triggering tension between the two neighboring countries. The Iraqi government called for immediate withdrawal of Iranian troops and the Iranian ambassador was summoned for contacts at the highest levels to convince Iran to pull out from the oilfield. Iraq’s government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh later announced that Iranian soldiers withdrew “partially” from the site and the Iranian flag was brought down. AmR (P)/SR 1