Execution reignites Saudi-Iranian feud
Shiite leaders condemn death of influential cleric
RIYADH — Saudi Arabia’s execution Saturday of 47 prisoners, including an influential Shiite cleric, threatened to further damage Sunni-Shiite relations in a regional struggle playing out across the Middle East between the kingdom and its regional foe Iran.
Shiite leaders across the region swiftly condemned Riyadh and warned of sectarian backlash as Saudi Arabia insisted the executions were part of a justified war on terrorism.
Also executed were al-Qaida detainees who were convicted of launching attacks against foreigners and security forces a decade ago.
The execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr becomes another focal point for sectarian and political wrangling between Saudi Arabia and Iran. The regional rivals back opposing sides in civil wars in Yemen and in Syria. Saudi Arabia was also a vocal critic of the recent Iranian agreement with world powers that ends international economic sanctions in exchange for limits on the Iranian nuclear program.
Iranian politicians warned the Saudi monarchy would pay a heavy price for al-Nimr’s death. The Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned the Saudi envoy in Tehran to protest and parliament speaker Ali Larijani said the execution would prompt “a maelstrom” in Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry later said it had summoned Iran’s envoy to the kingdom to protest the critical Iranian reaction to the sheik’s execution, saying it represented “blatant interference” in its internal affairs.
Al-Nimr’s execution could also antagonize the Shiite-led government in Iraq, which has close relations with Tehran. The Saudi embassy in Baghdad, which had been closed for nearly 25 years, was reopened Friday. An influential Shiite militia in Iraq, known as Asaib Ahl Al-Haq, called on the government Saturday to close down the embassy.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Aabadi Tweeted Saturday he was “shocked and saddened” by al-Nimr’s execution, adding, “peaceful opposition is a fundamental right. Repression does not last.”
Hundreds of al-Nimr’s supporters protested in his hometown of al-Qatif in eastern Saudi Arabia, in neighbouring Bahrain and as far away as northern India.
The sheik’s brother, Mohammed al-Nimr, said Saudi authorities told the family they already buried the body, but didn’t tell them at which cemetery. The family hoped to bury his body in his hometown. His funeral would likely have attracted thousands of supporters, including large numbers of protesters. Instead the family planned to hold prayers and accept condolences at the mosque in a village near al-Qatif, where the sheik used to pray.
State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement the U.S. is “particularly concerned” al-Nimr’s execution risked “exacerbating sectarian tensions at a time when they urgently need to be reduced.” He said the U.S. is calling on Saudi Arabia to ensure fair judicial proceedings and allow peaceful expression of dissent while working with leaders to defuse tensions after the executions.
Al-Nimr’s death comes 11 months after Saudi Arabia issued a counterterrorism law after Arab Spring protests shook the region in 2011 and toppled several longtime autocrats. The law codified the kingdom could prosecute as a terrorist anyone who demands reform, exposes corruption or otherwise engages in dissent or violence against the government.