Sectarian-Iran Government Destroys Largest Sunni School

Flag of the Arab Resistance in Occupied Ahwaz

Yesterday the Iranian Basij and police destroyed the largest religious school and masjid for the Sunnis in Iran in Zabol, Balochistan Province in eastern Iran has arrested many of its lecturers and students.

As reported by sources from the University, the government's armed forces attacked the Imam Abu Hanifa religious school, which is an affiliate of the University of Islamic Sciences in Zahedan. The Abu Hanifa School was the largest religious school for the Sunnis in Iran, where it was ranked second in terms of census and students ranked first in terms of overall progress in matters of education ranked according to Honor Degrees as well as scores on annual tests.

Sources confirmed that more than 80 cars belonging to police forces and elements of "Basijis" arrived at the Imam Abu Hanifa Masjid and arrested many professors and students who were taken to unknown locations and then proceeded to destroy the Masjid via bulldozers.

There has been no explanation by Iranian authorities or reasoning for this process. However, this is only one of many attacks by Iranian authorities against religious institutions and clerics this year, earlier this year a prominant Sunni scholar, Sheikh Ahmed Narhoei was arrested. The University of Islamic Sciences in Zahedan has stated: "We condemn these practices, which totally violate Islamic teachings and are incompatible with the principles of human rights and totally contradicts that which is in the Iranian constitution which gives full rights for us to pursue our own affairs in education."

Our Arab brothers and sisters in the Ahwazi Arab Renaissance Party have described the operation as a crime which stems from the sectarian discrimination and racial hatred exercised by leaders of the Iranian regime against the Sunnis in particular, but also all Non-Persian peoples and nationalities. They have also called on Arab and Islamic movements defending the Iranian regime, especially Islamic Jihad, Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood and others to condemn this heinous act and other crimes committed daily against Arabs and Sunnis in Iran.