Since Saudi Arabia severed ties to Iran, a host of its allies have cut or reduced their ties as well.
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The accusation comes amid a unsafe rise in tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia in recent days, following the kingdom’s execution of a Shi’ite cleric and attacks on Saudi diplomatic posts in the Islamic Republic.
“If the Saudis do not correct their path, their regime will collapse in coming years”.
Nimr, one of 47 men executed Saturday, January 2 was a driving force behind 2011 anti-government protests in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province.
Saddam, a Sunni, was hanged in 2006 after being convicted of crimes against humanity for the killing of 148 Shi’ite villagers after a failed assassination bid in 1982.
“Iran considers it as a legal obligation to protect diplomats of foreign countries”, he said, adding that Iran seeks friendly ties with the regional states as well as its neighbors. Pakistan has expressed hope that Saudi Arabia and Iran will be able to normalise their relations. The execution was also carried out to appease the Sunni Saudi clerics who are concerned about Iran’s growing regional influence, and at the same time deter sympathizers of ISIS, which regards Saudi Arabia as an enemy.
Several airlines, including Iran’s Mahan Air, use aircraft like the Airbus A330 and A320 for pilgrim flights and total to about 150 flights each month between the two countries, aviation sources said.
Saudi officials say that by taking offense at the execution of Nimr, Tehran has demonstrated its claim of dominion over all Shias regardless of national borders, which Riyadh in turn calls a fundamental threat to the global system.
Iran has accused the Saudi-led coalition battling Shi’ite rebels in Yemen of attacking its embassy in the capital, Sanaa, but there were no signs of damage on the building.
These substantive divides, more so than Riyadh and Tehran’s mutual animosity, are the reason for the diplomatic stalemate, Saab said.
At the same time the row has dealt another blow to the unity of the OPEC oil cartel, which includes both Iran and Saudi Arabia, at a time when a glut of crude on world markets has sent prices plunging.
The state news agency Petra says Jordan has summoned Iran’s ambassador to convey its condemnation of the storming of two of Saudi Arabia’s diplomatic missions in Iran. Shiites across the greater Mideast have rallied throughout the week over al-Nimr’s execution.
The ban was approved by a virtue of a bill that was raised and discussed in an extraordinary cabinet meeting led by President Hassan Rouhani.
Mohammed al-Nimr, the sheikh’s brother, said people planned to hold a funeral on Thursday for the cleric, though Saudi authorities already buried his corpse in an undisclosed cemetery.
“We still believe that violence is not the right approach”, he said.
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Fourth, although the USA is focusing on deescalating rather than mediating the Saudi-Iran crisis, it has no choice at this juncture but to play a more active role with the objective of resuming the Geneva talks at a later date to end the tragic civil war in Syria.
