In an order to Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization, Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Ali Jannati suspended Umrah to Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia in protest to sexual assault attempt against two teenage Iranian boys by Jeddah airport security forces.
“I have ordered the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization to suspend the Umrah pilgrimage until the criminals are sentenced and punished,” Ali Jannati asserted.
The airport security agents harassing two Iranian young Hajj pilgrims are kept in custody, Jannati said, adding that Saudi officials had promised to exert maximum punishment on the perpetrators behind the assault at Jeddah airport.
President Hassan Rouhani tasked Jannati with drawing up a response amid a mounting outcry in Iran over the allegations. “Considering what has happened, Iranians’ dignity has been damaged and a public demand has formed,” the minister said.
In reaction to the event, a group of Iranians gathered in front of the Saudi embassy on Sunday in protest to the indecency, chanting anti-Saudi slogans and calling for closing of the embassy as well as cancellation of Umrah hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
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