Iran’s Rhetoric on Muslim Unity Contradicts its Treatment of the Baloch and other non-Persian Nations: Hyrbyair Marri

LONDON: Free Balochistan Movement (FBM) President Hyrbyair Marri has criticised Iranian calls for Islamic unity, arguing that Tehran’s rhetoric on Muslim solidarity contradicts its treatment of the Baloch and other non-Persian nations under Iran’s oppression and occupation.

In a statement responding to remarks attributed to Mojtaba Khamenei, Marri questioned Iran’s appeal for Muslim unity and accused the Iranian clerical regime of using the issue of Palestine while overlooking what he described as decades of repression, displacement, mass lynchings and politically motivated cases against the Baloch people.

“Whilst Khamenei remembers the plight of Palestine, he forgets the mass lynching, trumped-up cases, and ongoing displacement of the Baloch by the Iranian Mullah regime,” Marri said.

Marri further argued that the modern Iranian state was established through the incorporation and occupation of territories inhabited by non-Persian peoples, specifically referring to Al-Ahwaz, Kurdistan areas and Balochistan. He said that Tehran’s appeals to Islamic unity ring hollow while these nations continue to face occupation and repression.

Addressing Iran’s claims of resistance, Marri contrasted the experience of the Iranian population with nearly a century of resistance by the Baloch.

“The Iranian people claim they have resistance in their blood, having only been bombed for 6 months, yet the Baloch people have been bombed for 98 years by Iran,” he said.

Marri concluded by saying that it is the Baloch people who have demonstrated a longstanding tradition of resistance, maintaining their opposition to Iranian occupation despite decades of pressure.

The Free Balochistan Movement advocates independence for Balochistan and opposes Iranian and Pakistani occupation over Baloch territories.