Don’t sow division amongst Muslims, Iran tells Bahrain

Foreign Ministry spokesman has censured the Bahraini foreign minister for his recent allegations against the Islamic Republic, calling on the top diplomat to stay away from approaches that seek to "sow division" among the Muslim ummah.

According to Press TV, on Thursday night, Bahram Qassemi advised Khalid bin Ahmed Aal-e Khalifah to deal with his own country's "internal problems instead of being narrow-minded and adopting repetitious stances ordered and indoctrinated by those who have gone astray in the region."

The senior Iranian official also called on the Bahraini foreign minister "to avoid making remarks about issues that relate to Muslims’ most significant religious ritual without referring to the massacre of innocent Muslims during the Mina tragedy" last year.

Speaking at the 146th ordinary session of the Arab League Council in the Egyptian capital city of Cairo on Thursday, Khalifah accused Iran of trying to "politicize" this year’s Hajj.

At least 465 Iranian pilgrims lost their lives during the stampede, which occurred after two large masses of pilgrims converged at a crossroads in Mina near the holy city of Mecca during the rituals on September 24, 2015.

Riyadh has refused to update the death toll of 770 it released days after the incident, but Iran, which had the largest number of deaths among foreign nationals, has put the death toll at about 4,700.

Just days before the Mina tragedy, a massive construction crane collapsed onto the Grand Mosque in Mecca, killing more than 100 people, including a number of Iranians, and leaving over 200 others wounded.

SS