A website associated with Iran’s main security organisation stated on Sunday that Iran has halted discussions with Saudi Arabia, which had been scheduled to begin this week, without citing a reason.
Tehran also denounced Saudi Arabia’s sweeping executions of Shi’ite Muslims, which activists reported totalled 41.
Talks on an Iranian nuclear agreement in Vienna have been also put on hold.
According to the Nor News, “Iran has unilaterally ended discussions with Saudi Arabia.” It stated that it had not yet organised a new round of negotiations.
Requests for comment to Saudi Arabia’s CIRC media office went unanswered.
Direct discussions between Shi’ite Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia, both embroiled in proxy wars around the region, were initiated last year in an effort to defuse tensions. A fresh round was to be held in Iraq on Wednesday, according to Iraq’s foreign minister on Saturday.
In 2016, Saudi Arabia severed ties with Iran. Iranian demonstrators stormed the Saudi embassy in Tehran after Saudi Arabia executed a Shiite preacher in 2016, and it was the last straw for the Saudi government.
Saudi Arabia said on Saturday that it has carried out the country’s largest mass execution in decades, 81 prisoners got executed. According to activists, 41 were Shi’ite Muslims from the Qatif area, which has been a flashpoint between the Sunni-dominated government and minority Shi’ites for many years.
As per Saudi Arabia, its regulations preserve the country’s national security and it dismisses claims of human rights violations.
State news agency, SPA, stated that the individuals killed on Saturday had access to a counsel and were protected by Saudi law during the legal procedure.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Saeed Khatibzadeh was quoted by Iranian state media as saying that the killings “violated basic human rights standards and international law.”
Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon called the killings “an awful crime” in a statement released on Sunday.
When it comes to regional crises, Saudi Arabia and Iran have supported opposite sides for years. Saudi Arabia has been leading an Arab coalition against the Houthi movement in Yemen since 2015.
Regarding direct negotiations, Riyadh has stated that little progress is being made. Two Yemeni “prisoners of war,” according to Houthi officials, were also killed by Saudi Arabia on Saturday.
After a last-minute Russian demand, international powers paused discussions on the 2015 Iran nuclear deal for an unspecified period, despite having a nearly completed document.
Works at The Truth International Magazine. My area of interest includes international relations, peace & conflict studies, qualitative & quantitative research in social sciences, and world politics. Reach@ [email protected]
