The accusation comes amid a unsafe rise in tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia in recent days following the kingdom’s execution of a Shiite cleric and attacks on Saudi diplomatic posts in the Islamic Republic.
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In a letter to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon published by Iranian news agencies earlier today, Iran’s foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif complained about Saudi Arabia’s “provocations” towards Tehran.
Saudi Arabia and Iran have long vied for influence in the Middle East. Their rivalry deepened following the toppling of Saddam Hussein in Iraq and the chaos of the Arab Spring, which gave rise to proxy wars in Syria and Yemen.
But a reporter for the Associated Press news agency said there was no visible damage to the embassy building, which is in a neighbourhood that has previously been targeted in air strikes.
More than 5,700 people have died, almost half of them civilians, since a pro-government coalition led by Saudi Arabia began a military campaign against Houthi rebels in March after the rebels seized the city of Sanaa and began to advance to Aden. Iran has offered support to the Houthis, but denies actively supporting their war effort. Bahrain, Sudan, and Kuwait have also scaled back diplomatic relations with Iran in solidarity.
Shia-dominated areas in eastern Saudi Arabia, the home of al-Nimr, held a three-day mourning period for the cleric.
On January 2, Saudi Arabia executed 47 alleged terrorists, including a prominent Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.
“The intentional act of the Saudi government was a violation of all global conventions and regulations about protecting the security and safety of diplomatic missions in all situations”, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hossein Jaber-Ansari said Thursday, according to IRNA.
He said the execution of Nimr, a Saudi citizen, had nothing to do with Iran and said the Iranian response to his death “proves that Iran is keen on extending its influence over the countries of the region”.
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Jan 9, 2016- Iran’s foreign minister has complained to the United Nations about Saudi Arabia’s “provocations” toward Tehran, as a diplomatic crisis between the region’s two major powers entered its second week.
