Iran threatened to destroy Saudi Arabia completely if it makes any “ignorant” move against the Islamic Republic.
Responding to aggressive remarks by the Saudi defense minister, Iran threatened to destroy Saudi Arabia in its entirety, excluding the Muslim holy sites.
If war breaks out between the two countries, Saudi Defense Minister Mohammed bin Salman recently warned, the battlefield will be inside Iran, not Saudi Arabia.
In an interview with Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV on Sunday, Iranian Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan responded to the threat, advising the Saudis “not to make any ignorant move, but if they do, we will not leave anywhere intact except (Muslim holy cities of) Mecca and Medina.”
Dehqan’s statement came after bin Salman had ruled out any dialogue with Iran, pledging to protect his kingdom from what he said were Tehran’s efforts to dominate the Muslim world.
“We know that we are a main goal for the Iranian regime… We will not wait until the battle becomes in Saudi Arabia, but we will work to have the battle in Iran rather than in Saudi Arabia,” Dehqan said.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry also denounced the Saudi minister’s comments last week, saying his words signaled a flawed understanding of the regional situation, a lack of political wisdom and a “strategic mistake” in pursuing the policy of spreading terrorism.
“Such comments are clear evidence that the Saudis promote terrorism and pursue provocative and destructive policies regarding the region and Iran affairs,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi stated.
Ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran have been strained since Iran’s 1979 revolution, with each side competing to be the more powerful force in the Muslim world.
Tensions escalated last year. Saudi Arabia’s execution of a local Shiite cleric sparked the ransacking of the Saudi Embassy in Iran by protesters. The two countries severed diplomatic and trade ties.
By: World Israel News Staff