PHOTO: Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami “Saudi rulers must be tried in Islamic courts”


Iran’s regime put out conflicting statements on Monday, as President Rouhani’s general foreign policy of “engagement” faced spiraling hostility towards Saudi Arabia.

Speaking to the Emir of Qatar on the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, Rouhani said:

Regional issues must be solved by regional countries and only through political dialogue and understanding. The Islamic Republic of Iran will spare no effort in establishing and promoting such a process and everyone must make efforts in this area….

We are all duty-bound to save Muslims from [the threat] of terrorism and to make efforts to establish stability in the region and reinforce fraternity among Muslims.

However, Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami — a Tehran Friday Prayer leader and member of the Assembly of Experts — had a different message during Eid al-Adha prayers, as he referred to the Hajj stampede near Mecca that killed thousands of people last September:

There is no doubt that al-Saud rulers are not the accused but the frontline criminals in the Mina disaster and are culpable at the least.

These criminals must be tried in Islamic courts and receive due punishment.

Relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia, already strained by competition in the region, further deteriorated after the Mina tragedy. In January, the Saudi execution of a prominent cleric led to a crowd’s attack on the Saudi Embassy in Tehran, followed by Riyadh’s breaking of relations with the Islamic Republic.

Rouhani’s pursuit of “engagement” was further damaged when negotiations to allow the resumption of Iranian pilgrims to the Hajj broke down last summer.

In the past week, the Supreme Leader has launched another surge in anti-Saudi rhetoric by declaring the monarchy as “wicked and evil progeny” who are “traitors” serving the US and Israel. On Friday, the regime staged anti-Saudi rallies across Tehran.

See Iran Daily, Sept 11: Tehran Calls for Fact-Finding Committee on Hajj Stampede