“For the past two-and-a-half years, Saudi Arabia has opposed Iran’s diplomacy”, Zarif said at a joint press conference in Tehran with Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari.
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It said the plane carried 54 Iranian diplomats and their families, who were welcomed by one of Iran’s deputy foreign ministers.
The rift between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which see themselmves as the champion of Sunnis and Shiites, has a long story that can be traced back to the year 632, when Prophet Muhammad died.
The furore over Saudi Arabia’s execution of a Shi’ite cleric has stripped almost 8 percent off the price of oil in the last three trading days, killing speculation that OPEC members might agree to production cuts to lift prices.
Iran warned Saudi Arabia Wednesday to stop working against it as their diplomatic crisis intensified despite efforts to defuse a row that has raised fears of greater regional instability.
Saudi security forces have also been targeted in attacks claimed by IS, whose leader has purportedly called Saudi rulers “apostate tyrants”. Al-Nimr was an outspoken critic of Saudi Arabia’s Sunni monarchy but denied ever calling for violence.
Iranian officials condemned Nimr’s killing, and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that Saudi would face “divine revenge”.
For example, though the kingdom has stopped flights to and from Iran, Qatar’s national carrier has no plans to do the same.
Iran has warned Saudi Arabia to stop “adding fuel to the fire” as the diplomatic crisis between the two countries continues, with Djibouti the latest country to cut ties with Tehran.
And Jordan summoned Iran’s ambassador to protest the attacks on Saudi missions.
Speaking alongside Jaafari, Iran’s foreign minister Zarif accused Saudi Arabia of rebuffing Iran’s offers to cooperate on “terrorism and extremism”.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s eastern Shiite heartland prepared to hold a funeral service on Thursday night to honour the executed Shiite cleric, Nimr al-Nimr.
Russian Federation also has offered itself as a potential mediator, although it is unclear whether Saudi or Iranian officials have responded to the proposal.
“And I want to emphasize here that we have no enmity towards Iran, we have no enmity towards the Iranian people”, Al-Jubeir said, adding that Saudi Arabia has merely been reacting to Iran’s outrage.
The executions, along with the decision to resume bombing in Yemen, were clearly meant to send a message of Saudi resolve and strength to both domestic and worldwide audiences.
But the executions conducted by Saudi Arabia – and the resulting embassy attack in Tehran – have divided countries in the region.
As Iraq fights its war against the Islamic State group that took over swathes of the country in 2014, partners offering their support against the jihadists have already been jockeying for influence on its soil.
“The real concern for us is the abuse of human rights”, he said.
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Though thousands of Iraqi Shias took to the streets on Tuesday to protest the execution of Nimr al-Nimr, Baghdad has taken a more cautious line.
