Saudi Arabia Says Switzerland to Handle Its Consular Affairs in Iran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Switzerland will handle Saudi Arabia's consular affairs in Iran and will facilitate Iranian pilgrims going to the kingdom, Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said Sunday, following a diplomatic tension between Riyadh and Tehran.
“Switzerland offered to ... handle the (consular) interests of Saudi Arabia in Iran, and we in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia appreciated that and accepted,” Adel al-Jubeir told a joint news conference with his Swiss counterpart, Reuters reported.
He said, however, there was no need for mediation in its rift with Iran.
Meanwhile, Iran has reportedly confirmed that Switzerland will host its interest sections in Riyadh, too.
Tensions ran high between Iran and Saudi Arabia in recent weeks mainly due to Riyadh’s execution of prominent Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, and a subsequent attack by outraged Iranian protesters on the Saudi embassy in Tehran, which resulted in the Arab country’s decision to sever its ties with the Islamic Republic.
On January 2, Saudi Arabia announced that it has executed Sheikh Nimr, among dozens of others. The execution ignited widespread international condemnation, from both political and religious figures.
The next day, furious demonstrators in the Iranian cities of Tehran and Mashhad stormed Saudi Arabia’s diplomatic buildings in protest at the execution of Sheikh Nimr.
Although Iranian officials criticized the embassy attack and police arrested dozens involved, Saudi Arabia cut off diplomatic relations with the Islamic Republic.