Khamenei urges Gulf to confront 'real enemy'

TEHRAN:

Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Sunday urged Muslim countries, particularly those in the Gulf, to unite against their "real enemy", saying divisions among Muslims served the interests of their adversaries.

Khamenei's message was published on his Telegram account for Islamic Unity Week, which marks the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). It called for Muslim unity, cooperation in various fields and mutual defence.

"Anyone who creates divisions among Muslims, knowingly or unknowingly, helps Islam's enemies," the message said, asking whether Palestinians would have been left "so helpless" if Muslims had been united.

"My emphatic and repeated recommendation to the rulers of Islamic countries, especially the countries of West Asia and the Gulf, is to identify your real enemy, understand his plan and confront it," Khamenei said.

He specifically asked Gulf Arab rulers whether "rogues without identity" would have dared to covet their lands and possessions if the peoples and governments of the Gulf had been "united under the flag of Islam".

Khamenei's call for unity echoed a statement he made on Friday to Iranians, when he said he had banned actions that harm social cohesion and urged authorities to avoid "discouraging statements" that weaken national and public morale.

According to AFP, Khamenei has not been seen in public since being injured in US-Israeli airstrikes six months ago that launched the Iran war and killed his father and previous Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

"The solution to the problems of the Islamic nations is unity of words, friendship, and cooperation on the path of goodness," he said, according to his official website.