Iran's Khamenei urges Gulf rulers in written message to confront 'real enemy'

Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei urged Muslim countries, particularly those in the Gulf, to unite against what he called their "real enemy" and said divisions among Muslims served ‌the interests of their adversaries.

The message was published on Khamenei's Telegram account for Islamic Unity Week, which marks the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad.

It called for Muslim unity, cooperation in various fields and mutual defence, saying anyone who creates divisions among Muslims, "knowingly or unknowingly," helps Islam's enemies.

It ⁠asked whether Palestinians would have been left "so helpless" if Muslims had been united.

Khamenei has not been seen in public since being injured in U.S.-Israeli airstrikes six months ago that launched the Iran war, killing his father and previous supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

His call for unity echoes 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.

Khamenei ‌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."

Reuters