Larijani: Muslims will not forget 'betrayal' of certain states

Iran's Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani has blasted certain Muslim countries for supporting a recent coordinated missile attack on Syria, saying their "betrayal" will not be forgotten.

The "brutal attack" by the US, Britain and France was a violation of all international regulations, Larijani said, expressing dismay that some Muslim states joined Israel to support it. 

"Is it not ignominious and shameful for them that on the day of Maba'ath which is the day of Muslim unity, these countries stood with the leaders of blasphemy and the Zionists and declared their betrayal with great joy?" the speaker asked. 

Maba'ath marks the descent of Allah's divine commandment through Archangel Gabriel to Prophet Muhammad, formally entrusting him the universal mission of Islam. Muslims mark the event with prayers and supplication to the Almighty as thanksgiving.

Saudi Arabia, along with Bahrain and Qatar, were among a few Muslim countries which joined Israel and the West to express full support for the strikes on Syria. 

The attack also came ahead of the annual Arab League summit in the Saudi city of Dhahran where leaders of the 22-member bloc gather on Sunday amid deep divisions among members. 

PressTV-Saudi, Bahrain support US-led strikes on Syria

Saudi Arabia and Bahrain have expressed support for the recent airstrikes on Syria.

While Saudi Arabia and Qatar remain locked in a months-long diplomatic standoff, President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem al-Quds as the so-called capital of Israel and his plan to move the US embassy to the occupied city has been weighing down on the summit.

However, the early Saturday attack cast further shadow over the gathering given that the Syria war, the most complex of the region's conflicts, is already the main point of contention pitting Riyadh against other Arab League members. 

Iraq on Saturday called on Arab leaders to "take a clear position" about Syria at the summit, saying the airstrikes carried out by the US, France and Britain  could give terrorism an opportunity to expand in the region.  

Larijani said, "The countries that continuously claim to be calling for Islamic unity and human rights at international conventions, have one hand behind the scenes in supporting terrorists and with the other they are offering their resources to the leaders of blasphemy to attack Islamic nations."

The speaker was apparently referring to a slew of deals that came out of the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's visit to the US earlier this month and those signed during Trump's visit to the kingdom last May. 

"The Saudis' initiative in offering their national resources to the Americans in the most shameless way exhorted them (the US) to bomb Syria in order to supposedly change the equation and restore the terrorists' haven," Larijani said. 

The speaker further said Western claims that the Syrian government was using chemical weapons were without any credibility.

"This pretext cannot have any credibility and the main issue should be sought somewhere else in the recent developments in Syria," he said, citing recent army victories in the Damascus suburbs of Eastern Ghouta. 

"For years, with the help of major countries and some rogue regimes, the Damascus suburb had been turned into a den for terrorists who made Damascus insecure with advanced weapons," he said.

"The Syrian army's recent cleansing of the area which the countries supporting the terrorists could not believe to happen in such a relatively short time" prompted them to carry out the attack, Larijani said. 

"Over the past 6-7 years, such adventurist moves have always existed but they have failed each and every time. However, the betrayal of certain Muslim countries in such a dirty game of politics will be etched in the memory of the faithful masses," he added

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