Saudi Arabia has severe its diplomatic ties with Iran, state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported. "We have decided to severe our diplomatic relations with a terror-sponsor country and we urge all countries to consider seriously whether they could tolerate sharing relations with a terror-sponsor country," Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir announced on Sunday, according to SPA.
Al-Jubeir's announcement comes a day after angry Iranian protestors stormed the Saudi Embassy in Tehran following the execution of prominent Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr.
Video shows protesters inside Saudi embassy in Tehran pic.twitter.com/DEmsNLI6ZG
— Sobhan Hassanvand (@Hassanvand) January 2, 2016
"The Iranian regime is the last regime in the world that could accuse others of supporting terrorism, considering that (Iran) is a state that sponsors terror, and is condemned by the U.N. and many countries," al-Jubeir said in a statement, according to Arab news. "Iran's criticism of the execution of terrorists and its hostile statements are blatant interference in the Kingdom's internal affairs."
The Saudi Kingdom executed al-Nimr and 46 others last week. Forty-five of the convicts were Saudi nationals while two were foreign nationals, a Chadian and an Egyptian. They were convicted of plotting and carrying out serial bomb blasts in the kingdom, as HNGN previously reported. The cleric was also accused of fuelling anti-government protests between 2011 and 2013.
Al-Nimr's execution sparked strong reactions from Shia Iran and clerics as well as from international rights organizations and Saudi critics. "Sheikh Nimr will undoubtly receive the grace of God and the hands of divine vengeance will surely snatch - by their necks - those cruel individuals who took his life and this is a source of comfort for us," Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said after the execution, according to RT.
