'Brothels, obscene concerts:' How an Iranian cleric's comment during Hajj threatens Tehran's shaky ties with Saudi Arabia

Iran is rushing to salvage its shaky ties with Saudi Arabia after a cleric, said to be close to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, made a controversial video criticising Saudi Arabia and its holy cities during the annual Hajj pilgrimage, according to reports.  

Hojatoleslam Gholamreza Ghasemian was arrested in Saudi's Medina on Monday soon after a video appeared on his Instagram pages where he was heard attacking Saudi Arabia's recent reforms. "You no longer need to go to Antalya (in Turkey) for casinos, brothels and obscene concerts," he said, adding that instead, they could go to Saudi Arabia.

Ghasemian, who is in the country to perform Hajj, accused Saudi Arabia of moral decline, adding that the reforms will "give dominance to atheism" in the country.

The video came to the attention of authorities who detained him. Though Saudi authorities have not yet commented on the arrest, they provided consular access to the detained cleric, according to Iran International.

After the issue snowballed into a major diplomatic crisis, Iranian officials struggled to contain the damage to the country's ties with Saudi Arabia, which was mended in 2023 with the intervention of China. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi himself took to X in English to condemn the incident. "Iran in no uncertain terms condemns any attempt to harm Muslim unity, particularly in the spiritual atmosphere of the Hajj," Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted in English on X Tuesday, adding that Tehran would not allow anyone to sabotage relations with Saudi Arabia. “The highly competent management of this year's Hajj is well appreciated by Iran."

Iran’s ambassador to Riyadh, Alireza Enayati, also took to X to state that Iranians "respect the sanctity of the Two Holy Mosques and adhere to the governing regulations." However, backers of Ghasemian have called his detention "unjustified and illegal".

Who is Hojatoleslam Gholamreza Ghasemian?

Ghasemian is one of the well-known TV experts in Iran and a host of the Quranic program "Mahfel'. This isn't the first time that Hojatoleslam Gholamreza Ghasemian has triggered controversy. A known Saudi critic, Ghasemian is said to have played a role in the 2016 attack on Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran, which caused a complete collapse of ties between the two nations. He was also a speaker at a religious delegation, some of whose attendees attacked and set fire to the Saudi Embassy. He had earlier made accusations against the Kingdom in 2011 at a student rally that led a group of Basij fighters to attack the British Embassy, according to Iran International.

Middle East