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Djibouti cuts ties with Iran after attacks on Saudi missions

“Djibouti cut its diplomatic ties with Iran out of solidarity with Saudi Arabia”, Foreign Minister Mahamoud Ali Youssouf told Reuters in a text message.

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Joining Riyadh and its Sunni Arab allies in taking diplomatic action, Kuwait said yesterday it was downgrading ties with Iran over a weekend attack on the Saudi embassy in Teheran.

The mood in markets is becoming worse, but oil has a reason for rising.

The accusation comes on the heels of Sunni-majority Saudi Arabia’s execution of a prominent Shiite cleric, which inflamed the predominately Shia Iran.

The crown prince, who also acts as Saudi Arabia’s defense minister, rejected claims of the arbitrary nature of Nimr’s execution, blaming the post-execution escalation on Iran, while expressing hope that the Islamic republic does not become Saudi Arabia’s main enemy.

The Associated Press reported that an AP correspondent in Sanaa could see no damage to the embassy.

Nimr was executed on Saturday along with 46 other prisoners that Riyadh said were “terrorists”.

“It was stressed to the ambassador that the attacks on the Saudi Arabian embassy and consulate in Tehran and Meshed were completely unacceptable and inexplicable”, the statement read. Somalia followed suit Thursday, saying it had given Iranian diplomats 72 hours to leave.

Iran’s embargo on imports from Saudi Arabia will reportedly affect goods worth about $40 million.

Northern Yemen is a stronghold of the Iranian-allied Houthi group, which has seized large parts of Yemen including the capital from forces loyal to the embattled Saudi-backed president, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

The two countries also support opposing sides in Syria.

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Saudi Arabia says it has shot down a missile fired into the kingdom from Yemen, which is engulfed in a civil war. The roadmap, adopted by the U.N. Security Council, calls for creation of a transitional government within six months and elections within 18 months.

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