Iran faces isolation among Islamic Countries
Moslem’s holy book of Quran defines human being as the noble creature who is God’s demonstrative on earth. Mullahs, ruling Iran, regard man as their ammunition of a war that keeps them in power. Human, in their view, is the most Inferior object that can be discredited, as it is in the case of how they treat Iranian women. Iranian Ayatollahs call the daily executions of their people the “will of God”. Holy Quran considers ethnic variety as man’s need to associate with each other and to establish friendship. Mullahs suppress minorities and treat other nations with meddling and terrorism.
In the same path, diplomacy, as an episode in human relations, considers embassies as centers of culture and economic association and for respect of other nations’ dignity. The officials in the Iranian regime see embassies targets for their hooligans to attack and set them afire. The newest example of this kind was the Saudi embassy in Tehran that came under attack by government mobs, and the historical relations of two Muslim nations became victim of mullahs’ quackery, who was trying to avert eyes from their weaknesses and defeats home.
Following the announcement of the execution of a prominent Shiite cleric in Saudi, the Saudi Embassy in Tehran was ransacked. Following the words of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who declared that Saudis would face “Divine revenge” for their misbehaviors, angry mobs stormed the country’s embassy in Tehran, throwing Molotov cocktails and calling for ”Death to Al Saud”. Same thing happened at the Consulate of Saudi Arabia in the northeastern city of Mashhad.
The tension between the two rooted in Tehran’s support for terrorist groups in the region. Appeasement by the west and in particular the United States left Iran free handed in its meddling in the neighboring countries. Washington’s mollification for Iran nuclear deal damaged its alliance with Saudi Arabia, and fed the mounting crisis in the Gulf. Despaired from US led coalition the regional countries set up their own alliance and got into action against Iran backed Houthi terrorist in Yemen. The defeat of Iran backed Houthis in Yemen and coffins returning home carrying corpses of Iran’s IRGC forces killed in Syria resembled Iranian regime’s weakening. With the upcoming March elections, that targets Khamenei’s position as the system’s “Supreme Leader” dogfight within the system rose. Attacks on embassies are a practiced solution Iranian regime has chosen at its hard moments. This time, however, the opponent was not P5+1, but the new coalition of Islamic countries.
The assault on Saudi embassy in Tehran set aflame the longstanding tension between the two states. In an exclusive interview with CNBC on January 5, 2016, Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir said, “Iranians daring to inject themselves into our domestic affairs is in-line with what Iran has been doing for years throughout the region; in Lebanon, in Syria, in Iraq, in Bahrain, in Yemen. They have been providing supplies for terrorists; they have been recruiting people; they have been assassinating people; they have been sowing sectarianism in the region, splitting the Islamic world. Their policies are in violation of all the norms and customs that the international community has been based on”. Saudi Ambassador Abdullah Al-Moualimi told reporters that Iran’s ‘interference’ in the internal affairs of Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries was to blame for the diplomatic rupture. Washington post, January 4 described the situation as, “The Middle East slid dangerously closer to regional conflict”.
Saudi Arabia, finally, broke off diplomatic relations with Iran and the next day, several of its allies followed suit. Bahrain joined Saudi Arabia in cutting off relations with Iran, and the United Arab Emirates, a key Iranian trading partner, recalled its ambassador from Tehran. Bahrain said on Friday January 8th it has halted all its flight to Iran.
Kuwait pulled out its ambassador to Tehran from Iran. The diplomatic row spread to Africa, where Sudan — a majority Sunni Muslim country — expelled the Iranian ambassador and the entire Iranian diplomatic mission in the country. Sudan also recalled its ambassador from Iran.
In Syria: Army of Islam, part of main opposition forces fighting Assad regime have expressed support for Saudi decision to cut ties with the Iranian regime. The Syrian Coalition forces too approved the decision by the Saudi to sever ties with Iran regime. Libyan government also expressed its support for Saudi against Iranian aggression.
With the surge of condemnations Iranian officials tried to find their way out of the isolation, On Thursday Jan 7th Iranian regime suited a complaint to the UN Security Council claiming its embassy in the Yemenis capital, Sanaa, had become a target for Saudi jet fighters. Germany’s dpa news agency announced that despite the claim by the Iranian regime but its embassy in Sanaa is intact and no sign of smoke or air attack is seen. A pretense by a clergy, close to Khamenei, was also interesting as he stated that Saudis aflame their own embassy to set the grounds to cut off relations with Iran.
The remedy put forth by the military coalition of the Islamic countries for accepting Iran as a neighbor is to desist from its terrorism and warmongering meddling into the region. This is a new challenge facing the regime after its retreat in nuclear programs. It seems that Ayatollahs in Tehran, who have lost support inside and outside their country, now find themselves deep in trouble.
Follow Ramin Jalali on @raminjalali25