Saudi Arabia has accused Iran of backing the Houthis.
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The tiny Horn of Africa nation, which is home to the United States’ only military base on the African continent, joins Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Sudan in entirely severing relations with Iran. After reaching a landmark nuclear deal with world powers in July, Rouhani is seeking to end Iran’s long isolation with the West. However, the repercussions of the attack could jeopardize that, posing the biggest diplomatic crisis of his government.
Jafari, the Iraqi foreign minister, said the country would work to “alleviate tensions”.
The assaults on its missions prompted Riyadh on Sunday to break off diplomatic ties with Iran and order its diplomats to leave the kingdom.
The Saudi-led coalition has been conducting frequent air strikes against Houthi forces, who have been in control of Sanaa since 2014, as part of its campaign to re-assert Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi’s control of the country.
Among Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip, 60% have a positive opinion of Saudi Arabia, compared with 46% among West Bank residents.
Iran is a key ally of the Shia-led government in Baghdad, has helped it in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group, and supports powerful Shia militias in the country. While embassies are often a focus of protests worldwide, Iran still celebrates the anniversary of the 1979 takeover of the US embassy in Tehran every year and refers to it as the Second Revolution.
“We have treated these actions with magnanimity and nobleness but unfortunately our neighbor, Saudi Arabia did not respond to it”, Zarif said, speaking alongside his Iraqi counterpart Ibrahim al-Jafaari in the Iranian capital on Wednesday.
Pakistan has expressed concern over ongoing tension between Saudi Arabia and Iran, with the Foreign Office condemning the attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran.
The diplomatic standoff between Saudi Arabia and Iran began on Saturday, when the Sunni kingdom executed 47 people, including a popular Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.
It comes amid growing diplomatic confrontations between Shiite power Iran and Saudi Arabia and its Sunni allies that threaten to widen sectarian rifts around the region.
On Wednesday, Iranian diplomats in Saudi Arabia returned to Tehran, according to state media.
“We hope that this dispute can be settled immediately through diplomacy”, Hasan said.
“A secret terrorist plot aided by the so-called Iranian Revolutionary Guard and the Hezbollah terrorist organization was foiled”, the Gulf island kingdom’s state news agency BNA reported.
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Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr was a staunch critic of the Saudi government but always denied advocating violence.
