DUSHANBE, January 6, 2016, Asia-Plus — Kuwait yesterday announced it is recalling its ambassador to Iran as a regional row over the execution of a Shia cleric in Saudi Arabia deepens.
Saudi Arabia”s embassy in Tehran was ransacked and set alight on Saturday, after it executed Shia Muslim cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr and 46 others.
Saudi Arabia broke off diplomatic ties with Iran in response, followed on Monday by its allies Bahrain and Sudan.
Kuwaiti news agency
KUNA
reports Kuwait”s Ministry of Foreign Affairs recalled Kuwaiti Ambassador to Iran on January 5. The Kuwaiti government said it was recalling its ambassador from the Iranian capital, describing the attacks as a “flagrant breach of international norms.”
According to
BBC
, Kuwait did not expel Tehran”s ambassador or downgrade diplomatic ties.
The US, UN and Russia are among those calling for calm in the region.
Saudi Arabia”s unexpected decision to carry out the executions – following convictions over terror offences – prompted an expression of “deep dismay” from the UN secretary general, while the US accused Saudi of exacerbating tensions “at a time when they urgently need to be reduced.”
But since then, Saudi Arabia has gained support from some allies in its response to the attacks on its missions in Tehran and the Iranian city of Mashhad.
Iran has reiterated its condemnation of Saudi Arabia, with President Hassan Rouhani saying it cannot “hide its crime of beheading a religious leader by severing political relations with Iran.”
Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shia Iran are major rivals for power in the Middle East and back opposing sides in the conflicts in Syria and Yemen.
