Former IRGC Top Commander Calls for Punishing “Crazy” Saudi Arabia

Rezayee, who is now the secretary of Iran’s Expediency Council (EC) vetting body, wrote on his Instagram page on Monday that Riyadh is spending huge sums to damage Iran and is doing crazy actions that have blown serious strikes at a number of regional states only due to its hate for Iran.

“Saudi Arabia included four anti-Iran paragraphs to the final statement of the recent Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit by means of pressure and millions of dollars of spending, and its confession to its 700-mln-dollar aid to Malaysia is just an example,” he said.

“Saudi Arabia’s behavior has crossed the border of devilish acts and has now turned into craziness and if this crazy devil is not punished, such insults (to Iran) will continue,” he added.

His remarks came after Riyadh and its allies supported inclusion of certain anti-Iran and anti-Hezbollah paragraphs in the final statement of the recent OIC summit in Turkey.

In reaction to the Saudi move, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif warned Riyadh against the outcomes of its plots and acts of sabotage against Tehran, reminding it of the fate of former Iraqi Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz who died in prison last year.

Addressing the last Tuesday meeting of the OIC summit in Istanbul, Zarif described the Saudis’ move as against the spirit of Islamic solidarity and in line with the Zionist regime’s interests.

He reminded of the instrumental use of the OIC during the Iraqi-imposed war against Iran (1980-1988), and said, “At that time, Mr. Tariq Aziz, the then Iraqi foreign minister, provided the ground for the approval of certain paragraphs against Iran with the support of certain regional states but we didn’t pay any attention to that anti-Iran approach. We should take lessons from the past. See where Tariq Aziz is now.”

Zarif also blasted Riyadh and its allies’ approach against the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance group, and said, “This act merely gladdens and encourages the Zionist regime.”

He stressed the necessity for the OIC to pursue a policy of strengthening unity among the Islamic states.

Saudi Arabia severed diplomatic relations with Iran on January 3 following demonstrations held in front of its embassy in Tehran and its consulate in Mashhad by angry protesters censuring the Al Saud family for the execution of prominent Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr in Riyadh on January 2.

Nimr’s execution caused international outrage and sparked anti-Saudi demonstrations in many other countries.

Riyadh has also been attempting to rock the boat in relations between Iran and other world states and has spared no efforts to pressure Tehran.