Iran: Riyadh warns visiting pilgrims


Issue 1085 - 19 Jul 2019 | 1 minute read

Saudi Arabia has warned visiting pilgrims to focus on religion and leave politics to one side when performing Hajj this year. Media minister Turki Bin Abdullah Al-Shabanah on 9 July urged visitors to refrain from “raising any political or doctrinal slogans”, following comments on 3 July by Iran’s Rahbar (Supreme Leader) Ayatollah Ali Khamenei that the Hajj was “a political act”; he criticised Saudi security measures around the pilgrimage. More than 86,000 Iranians are scheduled to perform Hajj this year. The regional rivals have fallen out over the Hajj before.

Tagged with:

Pin Iran, Saudi Arabia

Want to read more?

Subscribe to Gulf States Newsletter

View subscription options

This article is available to registered users

Login

Join our community

Sign up for an account to gain:

  • Set up news alerts on the countries and sectors that matter to you.
  • Free access to newsletter articles under 100 words.
  • Free access to GSN View articles articles.


View a selection of Free articles

Explore subscription options

Follow us on Google News