As reported by The Times of Israel on July 20, 2026, Iranian lawmaker Amir Hayat-Moghadam said, “Some Arab leaders claim to be Muslims, but in reality they are not. They merely go through the motions of prayer to keep their governments in power.” Hayat-Moghadam, who serves on Iran’s parliament National Security Committee, made the remarks in an interview with ILNA, where he questioned the religious sincerity of several Arab leaders while arguing that their public displays of faith were intended to preserve their political authority rather than reflect genuine religious belief.
Hayat-Moghadam said he did not consider many Arab leaders to be Muslims, but made a distinction between those governments and the citizens of their respective countries. He described the people of those nations as Muslims and expressed hope that they would eventually remove their leaders from power. His comments reflected a sharp criticism of regional governments while separating his views of political leadership from his perception of the wider populations living under those administrations.
He also issued a warning that Iran would retaliate against Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Jordan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia if attacks against Iran were launched from their territories. “States hosting US military bases would bear the consequences,” Hayat-Moghadam said, signaling Tehran’s stance on countries that could be used as staging grounds for military operations against Iran….See More