Azernews.Az

TEHRAN – Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned of a possible Iranian-Arab and Sunni-Shiite conflict in the region, the Iranian İRNA news agency reported.

"The U.S. and Western countries are trying to unleash an Iranian-Arab and Sunni-Shiite war," Ahmadinejad said in the Iranian city of Kermanshahr on Thursday. "They are trying to prevent the overthrow of the Zionist regime by creating differences among the regional peoples."

Bahrain launched riots against the authorities on Feb. 14. The government has appealed to Saudi Arabia for help to suppress the unrest.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE have sent their troops to Bahrain.

Last week, an Iranian committee on foreign policy and national security issued a statement protesting the sending of Saudi and UAE armed forces to Bahrain.

The commission warned about the possible consequences of such actions.

"Playing with fire is not in favor of Saudi Arabia," the committee said.

On Sunday evening, the Cooperation Council of Arab Gulf States convened in Riyadh for an extraordinary meeting. Afterwards, a joint statement was adopted condemning Iran's interference in the internal affairs of the organization’s member countries.

"Iran's interference in Bahrain’s internal affairs runs counter to international law," the organization said in the statement.