Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti Abdulaziz Al Sheikh stated that Tehran’s leaders are “not Muslims,” The Washington Post reported quoting AP.

This statement was made the next day after Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Saudi authorities of killing Muslims injured during last year’s crush of crowds at the hajj pilgrimage.

According to Al Sheikh, such remarks are “not surprising” because Iranians are descendants of “Majuws”— a term that refers to Zoroastrians and those who worship fire.

It was reported in January 2016, the rupture of relations of Saudi Arabia and Iran can cause huge losses due to the alleged refusal of the Iranian pilgrimage to Mecca.

It was also reported that around 100,000 Iranians attend Saudi Arabia for the Hajj annually, 500,000 more people more make a small pilgrimage. The share of Iranians among the pilgrims visiting the country makes about 5%.

The September 2015 stampede and crush of pilgrims killed at least 2,426 people, according to an Associated Press count. Iran had the highest of death toll of any country, with 464 Iranian pilgrims killed.