Iran invites Saudi, Bahraini kings to NAM summit

TEHRAN,July 30(MNA) – Saudi King Abdullah and King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain received Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s invitation letters to the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit through diplomatic channels. The XVI Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement is scheduled to be held in Tehran from August 26 to 31. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir-Abdollahian had planned to hand over the invitation letter to the Saudi king but after the execution of a number of Iranian nationals in the Saudi kingdom Amir-Abdollahian’s trip was cancelled. Likewise, the Al Khalifa regime’s crackdown on the Bahraini people, Tehran reduced its relationship with Manama to the level of charge d’affaires, and in protest against the regime’s acts of violence, the invitation letter to the Bahraini ruler was not delivered by Ahmadinejad’s special envoy. The Islamic Republic of Iran, as the host of the NAM summit, is obliged to invite all member states to the summit. According to reports, an Iranian delegation headed by Deputy Energy Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Massoud Hosseini arrived in Sanaa on Saturday to submit Ahmadinejad’s letter to the new Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Al-Hadi inviting to the NAM summit. Iran’s Ambassador to Doha, Abdollah Sohrabi, told the Persian service of the Mehr News Agency on Sunday that Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani is scheduled to participate in the NAM meeting in Tehran.