Iran claims Saudis hit embassy in Sanaa
Print Edition
Iran yesterday accused the Saudi-led coalition battling Shiite rebels in Yemen of hitting its embassy in the capital, Sanaa, in an overnight airstrike, but there were no visible signs of damage on the building.
The accusation comes amid a dangerous rise in tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia in recent days, following the kingdom’s execution of a Shiite cleric and attacks on Saudi diplomatic posts in the Islamic Republic.
Analysts fear the dispute could boil over into the proxy wars between the two Mideast rivals in Yemen and in Syria.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s eastern Shiite heartland prepared to hold a funeral service last night to honor the executed Shiite cleric, Nimr al-Nimr. That could spark further unrest, as witnesses in eastern Saudi towns have reported hearing gunfire overnight and armored personnel carriers have been seen driving through neighborhood streets.
Yesterday afternoon, Iran’s state-run news agency said a Saudi-led airstrike the previous night hit the Iranian embassy in Sanaa, citing Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman. However, a local reporter who reached the site just after the announcement saw no visible damage to the building.
Saudi officials could not be reached for comment.
The diplomatic standoff between Iran and Saudi Arabia began last Saturday, when the kingdom executed al-Nimr and 46 others convicted of terror charges — the largest mass execution it has carried out since 1980. Al-Nimr was a staunch critic of the Saudi government and demanded greater rights for the kingdom’s Shiite population, but always denied advocating violence. Saudi Arabia and its allies say al-Nimr was found guilty of terrorism charges, and that condemnation of the execution amounts to meddling in Riyadh’s internal affairs.
Iranian protesters responded by attacking the Saudi Embassy in Tehran and its consulate in Mashhad. Late on Sunday, Saudi Arabia announced it was severing relations with Iran because of the assaults. On Wednesday, Iranian diplomats in Saudi Arabia returned to Tehran, according to state media.
Since Saudi Arabia severed ties to Iran, a host of its allies have cut or reduced their ties as well.
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