The Council of Gulf International Relations (COGIR) has urged Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) as well as Arab and Islamic states to expel Iran from the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) because of its harmful acts against Islamic unity and solidarity and its sponsoring of terrorism and promoting sectarianism. The Council also stressed that Tehran's instigation of its agents in Yemen to target Makkah showed the Muslim world the hatred of this country for Islam's holiest sites. This was announced by the President of COGIR and Chairman of its Arab Society for Press and Freedom of Information Dr. Tariq Al-Sheikhan. Last Month, 11 countries wrote a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon cautioning that Iran was continuing a negative role in causing tension and instability in the region. The letter cited Tehran's expansionist regional policies, flagrant violations of the principle of sovereignty and constant interference in the internal affairs of Arab states. The letter was signed by the UN ambassadors of Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. UN Watch, a Geneva-based monitoring group, welcomed the letter, saying it was "important" that Muslim countries were speaking out against Iranian policies. "Iran likes to dismiss all criticism of its human rights violations and brutality at home and abroad as part of a Western plot, but that's hard to sustain when the accusers are all Muslim governments, including recent allies of Iran like Sudan," said UN Watch director Hillel Neuer in a statement.
