Iranian Ayatollah Accuses Saudi Arabia of Using Wahhabism to Divide Muslims in Iran

Grand Ayatollah Jafar Sobhani in a meeting
Grand Ayatollah Jafar Sobhani in a meeting

Prominent Iranian Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Jafar Sobhani said the forces of Saudi Arabia are seeking to destroy unity in Iran during a meeting on Sunday at Navvab Seminary in Mashhad north-eastern Iran.

"Our current enemy is Wahhabism... all the Saudi forces in the country are using Wahhabism to destroy Islamic unity and, on the other hand, to build a base for themselves in the world and disperse Muslims," Sobhani emphasized as reported by IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency.

Wahhabism, a branch of Sunni Islam, described as “a revivalist movement that grew out of the Hanbali school” by Human Rights Watch is widely practiced in Saudi Arabia.

The Islamic Republic has had tense relations with Saudi Arabia over the years, both as a rival to leadership in the region and as an adversary of the United States and its allies. In 2017, Saudi diplomatic missions were attacked by hardliner Shia religious mobs, tolerated by the Iranian government. The incident led to severance of ties for six years.

Sobhani added that elements from the “Deobandi movement” - a revivalist Sunni movement that spread from India to Pakistan and Afghanistan are “active” in Iran. He labeled these Deobandis as "a second form of Wahhabism" and emphasized the need to “examine and address the roots and issues of Wahhabism within the country.”

Sunni Muslims are a minority in Iran mostly belonging to Kurdish, Baluchi and other ethnic groups. The Sunnis are discriminated against by Iran's Shiite clerical rulers, both by being denied high-level government jobs and also being subjected to religious restrictions, such as being denied mosques in the capital Tehran.

Previously, other Iranian clerics have suggested that Wahhabism is on the rise in Iran, including ​​a high-ranking seminarian in Qom, Ayatollah Seyyed Mohammad-Javad Alavi-Boroujerdi in late 2013 during an interview.

"The number of Wahabi Muslims in Iran is also on the rise. They have increased their activities and have their own Friday Prayer congregations," said Boroujerdi.