The United Arab Emirates has made a "huge mistake" in reaching a deal toward normalising ties with Israel, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said on Saturday in a speech furiously condemning what he called a betrayal by the Gulf state.
The UAE-Israel agreement announced on Thursday, which U.S. President Donald Trump helped to broker, is seen as aimed at bolstering opposition to regional power Iran.
In his televised speech, Rouhani warned the UAE against allowing Israel a "foothold in the region".
"They (the UAE) better be mindful. They have committed a huge mistake, a treacherous act. We hope they will realise this and abandon this wrong path," Rouhani said without elaborating.
He said the deal seemed aimed at ensuring that Trump wins another term in the U.S. presidential election in November and referred to the fact it was announced in Washington.
"Why then did it happen now? If it weren't a wrong deal, why was it then announced in a third country, in America? So a gentleman in Washington wins votes, you betray your country, your people, Muslims and the Arab world?"
He added that the Emirates may also have thought that they could guarantee security by getting close to Iran's enemies, but Iran had "historically been the protector of its neighbours and ensurer of the security of the Persian Gulf."
Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guards Corps said in a statement on Saturday the UAE-Israel deal, would "accelerate the process of the destruction of the child-killing Zionist regime."
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Columbia University President Quits 4 Months After Gaza War Campus Protests Trump Speaks With Netanyahu Over Gaza Truce And Hostage Deal: Report Israel Confirms Its Delegation To Attend Gaza Truce Talks In Doha Independence Day Updates: "75,000 New Seats For Medical Students In Next 5 Years", Says PM Modi 150 mg Semen In Kolkata Doctor's Body, Suspect Gang-Rape: Parents To Court 2 French Rafale Jets Collide Mid-Air, Instructor, Pilot Missing "Strictest Punishment For Crimes Against Women": PM Amid Kolkata Protests "Working To Reduce Government Interference In People's Lives": PM Modi "Natural Disasters Increasing Concerns": PM Modi On Independence Day Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.