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Iraq offers to mediate Saudi-Iran dispute

Diplomatic tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, which began with the kingdom’s execution of Shiite Sheik Nimr al-Nimr and later saw attacks on Saudi diplomatic posts in the Islamic Republic, have seen countries around the world respond.

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The accusation came after Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic ties with Iran earlier this week after protesters set fires at the Saudi embassy in Tehran following the execution of a Shiite cleric by the Saudis.

Iran today warned Saudi Arabia to stop working against it as their diplomatic crisis intensified despite efforts to defuse a row that has raised fears of regional instability.

The Saudi-led coalition has promised to investigate the accusation, according to its spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri, though he added that any charge based on information provided by the Houthis has “no credibility”. Asseri said coalition jets targeted Houthi missile launchers in Sanaa on Wednesday night.

FILE – In this Sunday, Jan. 3, 2016 file photo, Iranian demonstrators burn representations of the US and Israeli flags during a demonstration in front of the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Tehran, Iran.

Bahrain, Sudan, Djibouti, Kuwait and the UAE have also rallied to Saudi Arabia’s side, breaking off or downgrading relations with Iran in recent days.

Iran accused the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen of deliberately bombing its embassy and injuring staff, worsening already-strained tensions between the rival powers.

‘The cabinet has banned the entry of all Saudi products and products from Saudi Arabia, ‘ a government statement said.

According to him, Iran should change its stance and express its willingness to normalize ties with Saudi Arabia, and then Riyadh will do the same.

It comes as 65 people were killed today when one of Libya’s worst truck bombs in years exploded at a police training centre in the town of Zliten.

Mayor Miftah Hamadi said the bomb detonated as recruits were gathering at the police centre in Zliten, a coastal town between the capital Tripoli and the port of Misrata.

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Residents and witnesses in the capital Sanaa said there was no damage to the embassy building in Hadda district.

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