U.N. Accuses Iran Of Sending Assad Arms

U.N. Accuses Iran Of Sending Assad Arms: By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Iran appears to be supplying Syria with weapons, the United Nations said on Wednesday, as the 17-month conflict that began as a popular uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad slides deeper into civil war. The U.N. accusation backs charges by Western officials that Iran is providing funds, weapons and intelligence support to Assad in his bid to crush the opposition. Syrian rebels also say Tehran has sent Revolutionary Guards and Hezbollah fighters. "The Secretary-General has repeatedly expressed his concern about the arms flows to the two parties in Syria, which in some cases appear to violate resolution 1747 passed by this council banning arms exports under Chapter 7 authority," U.N. political affairs chief Jeffrey Feltman told the U.N. Security Council. In a prepared copy of his speech, Feltman noted that the ban was on Iranian arms exports.