Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is to attend an extraordinary summit of Muslim leaders in the holy city of Mecca next week at the invitation of the Saudi king, an aide said on Monday. Ahmadinejad will attend the summit “to discuss the development in Muslim countries,” Mohammad Reza Forqani, head of international affairs in the president’s office, told the official IRNA news agency. Forqani said the two-day summit will start on August 14. Saudi Arabia last month called for the summit with the aim of “unifying the ranks” of Muslims. It hosts the headquarters of the 57-member pan-Muslim body, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, in the Red Sea city of Jeddah. King Abdullah invited Ahmadinejad, the official Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday, despite heightened tensions between the Sunni-dominated kingdom and the predominantly Shiite Islamic republic.
Iran president to attend Saudi summit
