Israel Matzav

Awesome: 'Islamic solidarity games' canceled over name of Gulf

The 'Islamic solidarity games' among Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, the UAE, Qatar and Bahrain have been canceled over a dispute over whether to call the extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula the 'Persian Gulf' or the 'Arabian Gulf.'

The Islamic Solidarity Sports Federation (ISSF) in Riyadh said, after an emergency board meeting, Iran's local organising committee "unilaterally took some decisions without asking the federation by writing some slogans on the medals and pamphlets of the games".

Iran "did not abide by the rules of the Islamic Solidarity Sports Federation" and "did not follow the decisions taken by the general assembly of the federation at a previous meeting in Riyadh", it said in a statement.

But Iran's committee for the games disputed the decision.

"In spite of convincing arguments made to the ISSF executive committee, regrettably and without presenting any logical reasons, the ISSF committee decided not to hold the games with Iran as the host," it said.

The games - which are meant to strengthen ties among Islamic countries - were first held in the Saudi city of Jeddah in 2005.

The games were originally to have been held in October 2009, but were postponed to April 2010 in the hope of resolving the dispute.

Solidarity? Heh.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 4:21 PM