The head of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council hit back at Khamenei’s remarks on Wednesday, calling them “inappropriate and offensive… and a desperate attempt to politicise” the hajj.
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The fallout was so severe that according to Iranian hajj officials, the Saudis placed serious obstacles in front of Iranian pilgrims this year, causing them to miss the hajj for the first time in almost three decades.
Saudi Arabia’s top religious authority said Iran’s leaders were not Muslims, drawing a rebuke from Tehran in an unusually harsh exchange between the regional rivals over the running of the annual hajj pilgrimage.
According to an Associated Press count 2,426 pilgrims were killed in last September’s hajj stampede, among them 464 Iranians.
Jeddah, Sep. 8 (BNA): Iranian hajj pilgrims hailing from outside Iran including journalists, reporters and media men said the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has exerted maximum efforts in the provision of all means to serve all hajj pilgrims regardless of nationality or origin.
Saudi Arabia is expecting a more subdued Hajj and ensuing Eid celebration this year: the global slump in oil prices has led to government spending cuts and a drop in consumer spending, leaving citizens facing their most austere Eid in more than a decade.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei launched renewed criticism of Saudi Arabia over how it organises the Hajj after a crush past year killed hundreds of pilgrims, many of whom were Iranians.
Iran sent 60,000 pilgrims a year ago but in May the two sides – at odds over a series of regional issues – said they could not agree on their participation this time.
Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, accused Tehran of preventing Iranian pilgrims from performing the annual Hajj pilgrimage and “politicizing” the ritual.
Saudi authorities normally seek to avoid public discussion of whether Shias are Muslims, but implicitly recognise them as such by welcoming them to the Hajj.
The grand mufti responded on Tuesday, telling the Makkah daily: “We must understand these are not Muslims, they are children of Magi and their hostility towards Muslims is an old one”.
Negotiations aimed at allowing Iranian pilgrims to participate in this year’s event have broken down, so no Iranians will attend. Performing Hajj is one of the most integral rights of being a Muslim, one that must not be taken away from Iranians regardless of the official position of the Iranian state.
He further criticized those Muslim states that remained silent about the incident and said the Islamic Republic was the only country that slammed the Saudi government.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry said earlier this year it remains “very concerned” for the safety of its nationals and will not be sending any pilgrims to Mecca or Medina this year. And that gets to the heart of the legitimacy of the Saudi regime, Nasr says, because they present themselves as the custodians of two of Islam’s holy places.
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A top Saudi official said Khamenei’s accusations reflect “a new low”.
