UN Secretary-general Ban Ki-moon spoke with the foreign ministers of Iran and Saudi Arabia Sunday to try to quell new tensions between the two Middle Eastern powerhouses.
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Iran will raise exports by 500,000 barrels a day within a week of sanctions being removed, said Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency.
Bahrain, a Sunni-ruled island kingdom with a restive Shia majority, accused Iran of “blatant and risky interference” in the affairs of the Gulf Arab countries, in a statement announcing the severing of diplomatic ties.
He went on to give all Iranian diplomats in the kingdom 48 hours to leave the country.
Syrian insurgent group Jaysh al Islam on Monday welcomed Saudi Arabia’s rupture of ties with Iran, saying Tehran’s backing of Shiite militias was destabilizing the Middle East and stoking sectarian tensions in Syria.
Saudi Arabia broke off relations on Sunday after a mob stormed its embassy in Tehran, amid outrage that a leading Shia cleric was among 47 people executed by the Sunni Muslim kingdom on Saturday.
Iranian women gather during a demonstration against the execution of prominent Shiite Muslim cleric Nimr al-Nimr (portrait) by Saudi authorities, at Imam Hossein Square in the capital Tehran on January 4, 2016.
In October, Bahrain ordered the acting Iranian charge d’affaires to leave within 72 hours and recalled its own ambassador from Tehran after alleging Iran sponsored “subversion” and “terrorism” and funneled arms to militants.
“It was very hard to get everybody around the table”.
An Iranian lawmaker also reportedly said that the end of Riyadh-Tehran relations could force the Islamic Republic to stop sending pilgrims to the annual hajj.
World powers have sought to calm the tensions.
On Sunday, the Sudanese government condemned the attacks and declared its full solidarity with Saudi Arabia.
Earlier Monday, Bahrain and Sudan followed Riyadh in cutting relations with Iran and expelled Iranian ambassadors in protest at the attacks on Saudi missions. In Washington, State Department spokesman John Kirby said the Obama administration believes “diplomatic engagement and direct conversations remain essential in working through differences”.
Shia protest the execution of al-Nimr in the coastal Qatif province.
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“It turns out we were right not to deliver battle tanks or G36 assault rifles to Saudi Arabia”, he added, national news agency DPA reported. Iran, a staunch supporter of embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad, and Saudi Arabia, a key backer of the opposition, have participated in three rounds of worldwide talks aimed at ending the conflict. After listing the crimes of 43 Al Qaeda members also put to death on Saturday alongside four Shias, Jubeir said of the executions: “We should be applauded for this, not criticised”.
