Leader’s advisor: Muslim states having ties with Israel unacceptable to Iran

ByIFP Editorial Staff

A senior advisor to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei says Iran cannot accept that Muslim states establish relations with Israel, adding that the closer they become to the regime, the farther they get from the Islamic Republic.

 In an interview with Ettela’at Daily, Ali-Akbar Velayati was asked about relations of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with Israel and how the issue can affect Tehran’s ties with its two neighbors.

He said Iran and Azerbaijan have good neighborly ties, but this does not mean that their political agendas are in full accordance.

Velayati, however, added, “Muslim countries having ties with the Zionist regime is unacceptable to us, and if any party has relations with the regime, it gets far from us to the degree of [its closeness to Israel],” he added.

Four Arab countries normalized their relations with Israel in 2020 under agreements pushed by former US President Donald Trump.

The Arab countries, namely the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco, sparked widespread condemnations throughout the Muslim world, especially in Palestine, which sees the deals as a stab in the back of the oppressed nation.

Earlier this month, Ayatollah Khamenei warned that the Zionists were an immediate and obvious plague for the Muslim world, adding the Arab governments that chose to normalize relations with Israel will end up being exploited by the regime.