Bahrain and Sudan Cut Diplomatic Ties with Iran

Shiite protesters took to the streets from Bahrain to Pakistan, while Arab allies of Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia lined up behind the kingdom.

Al-Nimr, a central figure in the Arab Spring-inspired protests by Saudi Arabia’s Shiite minority, was executed after being convicted of sedition and of other crimes, though he long denied advocating violence. What are the economic and security consequences for both countries and the region as a whole? He was notably a force behind 2011 anti-government protests in the east of the country, where Shiites have long complained of marginalisation. The UAE has recalled its ambassador from Iran and downgraded diplomatic ties. “It certainly is going to be even more hard to get everybody back around the table if you have the Saudis and the Iranians trading public barbs and public expressions of antagonism”, he said.

Mr Jubeir said that all Iranian diplomats must leave Saudi Arabia within 48 hours.

The move could affect the annual hajj pilgrimage. They have also parried in Bahrain, where a Sunni ruler governs a mostly Shiite population, and in Iraq, where Iran holds considerable influence over the predominantly Shiite government; and traded barbs over the death toll of the stampede at the Hajj last September.

The Sudanese Foreign ministry also announced it is cutting diplomatic ties with Iran. The hajj this year likely will begin in early September, though Muslims travel to the holy sites all year long as well. A US official said Kerry had spoken on Sunday with the U.N special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, to gauge any impact Saudi-Iranian developments might have on the planned January 25 start of negotiations.

Meawhile, Iran said Riyadh had used the embassy incident and a similar attack on its consulate in the Iranian city of Mashhad as an “excuse” to stoke tensions. There was no immediate indication that those talks would be disrupted, the official said.

Insisting Riyadh would react to “Iranian aggression”, Jubeir accused Tehran of despatching fighters to Arab countries and plotting attacks inside the kingdom and its Gulf neighbours. The RIA Novosti news agency did not say whether Moscow had made the mediation proposal to either side.

“We expect all regional powers to act responsibly toward this volatile situation”, European Union foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini’s spokesperson, Catherine Ray, briefed a press conference.

France and Germany on Monday echoed a call by the U.S. for Saudi Arabia and Iran to talk to each other and reduce tensions, while China said it was concerned about the prospect of conflict in the Middle East intensifying as a result of the row.

In response to a Saudi letter, the U.N. Security Council late Monday strongly condemned the attacks by Iranian protesters on Saudi diplomatic posts.

A man was killed and a child was moderately injured on Sunday evening when unidentified gunmen opened fire on a police patrol in Saudi Arabia’s eastern predominantly-Shia Qatif province.