Kuwait Recalls Envoy to Iran After Attacks on Saudi Diplomatic Missions

According to media reports, Kuwait's Foreign Ministry summoned the ambassador to Iran as diplomatic row over Saudi execution of Shiite cleric deepens.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Kuwait has followed Saudi Arabia and Bahrain in recalling its ambassador to Iran after a major diplomatic row sparked off in the Middle East, the local media reported Tuesday.

“The Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned Kuwait’s ambassador to Iran on the backdrop of the storming, torching and sabotage activities carried out by a group of demonstrators on the Saudi Embassy in Tehran and its Consulate in Mashhad,” the state-run Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) said.

Protests were triggered by Saudi Arabia’s execution of a prominent Shiite cleric on Saturday, along with 46 others convicted of terror-related offenses.

The outlet cited a Foreign Ministry source as saying in a statement that attacks on diplomatic missions violated Iran’s commitment to protect diplomatic missions on its territory under international conventions.

Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr’s death sparked outrage and demonstrations in Shiite communities across the region. Protests were staged in Saudi Arabia’s Shiite-majority Eastern Province, as well as in Iraq and Bahrain.

On Sunday, a violent mob stormed the Saudi Embassy in Tehran, setting fire to the building before they were driven away. Tehran pledged to do everything in its powers to find those responsible and bring them to justice, making first arrests in the case within hours.