Iranian President Hassan Rouhani yesterday said that Saudi Arabia cannot hide “its crime” of executing a Shiite Muslim cleric by cutting ties with Tehran, warning that discord could affect the fight against terrorism.
Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Sudan broke all ties with Iran and the United Arab Emirates on Monday downgraded its relations after the Saudi embassy in Tehran was stormed by protesters.
Kuwait yesterday recalled its ambassador to Iran.
Photo: AP
An angry mob broke into the embassy on Saturday night and started fires following protests against the kingdom’s execution of cleric Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent critic of Saudi policy, and three other Shiites as well as 43 Sunni al-Qaeda militants.
“Saudi Arabia cannot hide its crime of beheading a religious leader by severing political relations with Iran,” Rouhani was quoted as saying by the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) in a meeting with the Danish Minister for Foreign Affairs Kristian Jensen in Tehran.
“We believe diplomacy and negotiations are the best way to solve problems between countries,” he added. “Regional countries can save the region of terrorism dangers through unity.”
The Iranian government is trying to calm tensions by distancing itself from the attack on the Saudi embassy and even blaming foreign elements for organizing it.
Iranian government’s spokesman called the attack “suspicious” and “in favor of Saudi Arabia’s policies.”
“A few people — with whom it’s not clear which country’s interests they are serving — took advantage of people’s feelings,” the Iranian Labor News Agency yesterday quoted Mohammad Bagher Nobakht as saying.
Iranian Justice Minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi was also quoted by Iranian media as saying “the latest action against the Saudi embassy could be planned and supported by infiltrated agents.”
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has referred to the embassy attackers as extremists and said Iran should put to an end to attacking embassies once and forever.
The government has also expressed “regrets” in a letter to the UN over the attacks and reiterated its commitment to complying with international law. Iranian Ambassador to the UN Gholam-Ali Khoshroo on Monday sent the letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, IRNA reported.
“Iran will take necessary measures to prevent similar occurrences,” he wrote, adding that his country “will do its best to arrest all the perpetrators of the incident and prosecute them.”
Fifty people involved in Saturday night’s attacks have been arrested and referred to the judiciary, a spokesman for Iran’s police said.
Additional reporting by Bloomberg
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