The statement by the 15-member council made no mention of the execution of Sheikh Nimr Al Nimr and called on Iran to protect diplomatic personnel and property.
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On Monday, the United Arab Emirates announced that it will “downgrade the level of its diplomatic representation” in Iran, recalling its ambassador from Tehran.
A prominent Iranian lawmaker says Saudi Arabia’s decision to sever diplomatic ties with Iran likely will force the Islamic Republic to stop sending pilgrims to the annual hajj. News of his execution has sparked Shiite protests from Bahrain to Pakistan.
The statement was Iran’s first official reaction to a Sunday announcement by Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir that Riyadh had cut diplomatic relations with Tehran and that all Iranian diplomats had 48 hours to depart the kingdom.
Iraqi Shi’ites protesting the January 2 execution of Saudi Shi’ite cleric Nimr al-Nimr separately marched in Baghdad and in southern cities, calling for a boycott of Saudi products and severing ties with the Sunni-ruled kingdom.
As a effect, Saudi Arabia has severed diplomatic relations with its regional rival.
An Iranian official has denounced Saudi Arabia’s move to cut diplomatic relations with Iran and accused the Sunni kingdom of stoking tensions region-wide.
Speaking during a visit to east London, Mr Cameron said: “It is hugely concerning because of course we want to see stability in the Middle East, we want to see good relations between the different countries in the Middle East, not least because that will be absolutely essential for solving the crisis in Syria which is the source of so many of these problems”.
As global worries grew, US Secretary of State John Kerry called his Iranian and Saudi Arabian counterparts, US officials said.
Another Saudi mission also was attacked in Mashhad, Iran.
Shi’ite groups united in condemnation of Saudi Arabia while Sunni powers rallied behind the kingdom, hardening a sectarian split that has torn apart communities across the Middle East and nourished the jihadist ideology of Islamic State.
A man was killed and a child was moderately injured on Sunday evening when unidentified gunmen opened fire on a police patrol in Saudi Arabia’s eastern predominantly-Shia Qatif province.
Iranian protesters stormed the Saudi embassy early on Sunday and Shi’ite Iran’s top leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, predicted “divine vengeance” for the execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, an outspoken opponent of the kingdom’s ruling Al Saudi family.
In Bahrain, where authorities defended Saudi Arabia along with other Gulf allies of Riyadh, police used buckshot and tear gas against Shiiite protesters who threw petrol bombs.
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Saudi Arabia and Iran have long vied for influence in the Middle East, with their rivalry deepening following the toppling of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, which allowed Iran to assert dominance there, and the chaos of the Arab Spring, which gave rise to proxy wars in Syria and Yemen.
