Morocco decided to break off its diplomatic relations with Iran, effective from yesterday, said a statement of its Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maghreb Arabe Presse (MAP) reported. The statement cited the "inadmissible attitude" of the Iranian authorities against Morocco, and the activities of Tehran's representative Office in Rabat to alter the religious fundamentals of Morocco as causes of this decision, the agency added Morocco recalled on February 25 its interim Chargé D'affaires in Tehran for consultations for a week, the statement said. Morocco has also demanded explanations from Iran after it issued a communiqué that included "unacceptable" language following Morocco's solidarity, like many other countries, with the territorial integrity of Bahrain, the statement added. According to the foreign ministry, Iran's diplomatic representation members were trying to alter the fundamentals of the identity of the Moroccan people, and to undermine the uniqueness of the cult and of the Sunnite Malekite rite adopted in the north African Kingdom. "Such activities constitute an unbearable interference in the domestic affairs of Morocco, and run contrary to the diplomatic rules and ethics", it noted. "For these reasons, and as the one-week deadline expired without the Iranian authorities providing any explanation, the Moroccan authorities have decided to cut diplomatic relations with Iran," the statement concluded.
