Jordan summons Iran's ambassador as Turkish president calls execution of Shia leader in Saudi Arabia "a domestic issue".
Qatar
has become the latest country to back Saudi Arabia in its dispute with
Iran, recalling its ambassador to Tehran on Wednesday in response to the
attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions last weekend.
Jordan, Djibouti, and Turkey also expressed pro-Saudi positions on
Wednesday after the embassy attacks in Iran that followed the execution
of a renowned Shia leader in Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the execution of 47 men for
terrorism charges in Saudi Arabia was "a domestic issue". One of those
put to death was Shia Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr - a move that stirred
sectarian anger across the region.
"Forty-six of those who were executed are
Sunni and they are executed because they are affiliated with al-Qaeda.
One of them was a Shia religious leader. This decision was previously
taken and Saudi Arabia implemented it. This is their decision," Erdogan
said in a speech in the capital Ankara.
The president also said those who remained silent about the deaths of
people in Syria's civil war were causing an uproar over the execution
of one person in Saudi Arabia, apparently referring to Iran though he
did not name names.
"You are giving your support [to the Syrian
regime] either implicitly or openly. You are giving financial and
weapons support to the murderer [President Bashar] Assad," Erdogan said.
"The Saudi Arabian embassy [in Iran] was hit with rocket launchers. Its
embassy in Iraq was also vandalised. This is not acceptable in terms of
international relations."
Meanwhile, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani
asked the country's judiciary on Wednesday to urgently prosecute the
people who attacked the Saudi missions.
"By punishing the attackers and those who
orchestrated this obvious offence, we should put an end once and forever
to such damage and insults to Iran's dignity and national security,"
Rouhani was quoted as saying in a letter published on the state news
agency IRNA.
Djibouti cut diplomatic relations with Iran
in response to the storming of the Saudi embassy. The tiny Horn of
Africa nation joins Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Sudan in entirely severing
relations with Shia Muslim Iran.
"Djibouti cut its diplomatic ties with Iran
out of solidarity with Saudi Arabia," Foreign Minister Mahamoud Ali
Youssouf told Reuters news agency in a text message.
Qatar, United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait have recalled their envoys to Iran.
Meanwhile, Jordan summoned Iran's ambassador in Amman on Wednesday to
condemn the embassy attack, and "Iranian interference" in Arab affairs,
according to Jordanian state news agency Petra.
Iranian protesters stormed the Saudi embassy and other diplomatic
posts early Sunday. Since the attacks, Iran says it has made arrests and
has criticised the violent protesters.
Iran's top leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, predicted "divine vengeance" for the execution of Nimr.
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