Iran’s outrageous comments on the situation in Bahrain are dangerous and gross meddling in the internal affairs of another sovereign state. They must be refuted and Iran must be reminded that it has no right to comment or interfere in the internal affairs of other nations.
Iran’s miserable record of seeking to exacerbate sectarian tensions in the region is a significant reason why violence in the region has continued in such dangerous excess, leading to the collapse of several governments and allowing sectarian hatred to flourish and terrorists to find safe havens.
On Monday, Bahrain’s government revoked the citizenship of Shaikh Eisa Qasim, Bahrain’s leading Shiite cleric, after Qasim had played a key role in fomenting an extremist sectarian atmosphere in Bahrain and had formed groups that “follow foreign religious ideologies and political entities” according to the Interior Ministry. The decision was made by the Bahraini government under Bahrain law about a Bahraini citizen, which leaves no room whatsoever for Iran to be involved.
Nonetheless, Iran chose to condemn the decision with some grossly inflammatory statements. Iran’s Foreign Ministry urged Bahrain to hold a “serious national dialogue”, even though such a matter is an internal affair for Bahrainis to follow in their own time. But the situation was made much worse by the high-profile General Qasim Sulaimani, who heads Iran’s Revolutionary Guard’s infamous Quds Force, which has been disgracefully active in encouraging civil war and sectarian conflicts on several fronts in the Arab world.
It is deeply offensive that an Iranian general can get away with such atrocious statements, such as saying that the decision of the Bahraini government crosses “a red line” or even worse that he should threaten that Bahrain“will pay the cost”.
This sort of outrageous rhetoric must cease. The leadership in Iran has to restrain its rogue military commander and must stop its policy of interfering in Arab affairs and trying to seek advantage by fomenting sectarian hatred.
Qasim is a Bahraini citizen and must obey Bahraini law, which naturally does not permit him to use his preaching to exploit the religious pulpit for political purposes to serve foreign interests. All national governments in the region must work to avoid such dangerous directions, including Iran.
