Iran’s Supreme Leader has said the Islamic pilgrimage of Hajj is a fundamentally political act and urged Muslim nations to unite against the United States and Israel, in remarks likely to revive tensions with Saudi Arabia ahead of the annual pilgrimage season.
“Hajj is a duty whose very structure is political,” Ali Khamenei said during a meeting with Hajj officials in Tehran. “It brings people together at a specific time and place, and this gathering has an inherently political nature.”
He added that the pilgrimage should serve the interests of Muslims, with the greatest benefit being unity among Islamic nations. “If Muslims were united, Gaza and Palestine would not suffer like this.”
While calling for Muslim solidarity, Khamenei implicitly warned Riyadh against rapprochement with Israel, saying that cooperation with Washington and Tel Aviv amounted to “oppression.”
His remarks follow reports of renewed Saudi-Israeli contacts brokered by US officials following the Gaza war.
The speech comes just weeks after Khamenei told visiting Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman that closer ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia would be mutually beneficial and should overcome hostile interference.
However, the tone of his latest address contrasts with that message, returning to the combative rhetoric that has historically strained Iran-Saudi ties—especially over the politicization of Hajj.
Saudi Arabia has repeatedly using the pilgrimage for sectarian or political activity, implementing strict rules to prevent disruptions.
Since the Gaza war, multiple pilgrims wearing the Palestinian flag have been removed from the holy site.
According to regulations released by the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah in August, pilgrims are forbidden from bringing any prohibited items, such as pictures, books, flags, slogans, political publications, or other banned materials, into Saudi Arabia, according to the Saudi Gazette.
The kingdom’s 1987 clash with Iranian demonstrators during Hajj led to hundreds of deaths and a long diplomatic rift, which only began to heal with a China-brokered rapprochement in 2023.
