"The initiative of Imam Khomeini (RA) in naming the week unity is in line with the approach of Muslim solidarity and the convergence of Islamic states to achieve the highest human values and human happiness," Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian wrote on Saturday.
"I congratulate the Muslims of the world and my counterparts in Islamic countries on the birthday anniversary of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)," he added.
The Islamic Unity Week refers to a ceremony held every year both by Sunnis and Shia. Shia tradition holds that the Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) was born on the seventeenth day of the lunar month of Rabi' al-Awwal. On the other hand, according to Sunni tradition, he was born on the 12th of Rabi' al-Awwal. The event is held between two dates of the birthday of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).
Marked first time in Iran in the mid-1980s and based on the decree of the late Imam Khomeini, Muslims around the world observe Islamic Unity Week between these dates.
RHM/