Iran says Saudi-led strike hit its Yemen embassy

A protester shouts anti-Saudi slogans as he takes part in a protest against the execution of Saudi Shia cleric Nimr al-Nimr by Saudi authorities.

Iraq has undertaken a delicate balancing act amid the latest regional turmoil.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) – Saudi Arabia’s soccer federation has said its clubs will not play Asian Champions League matches in Iran amid rising diplomatic tension. Saudi officials have even claimed that Iranian military commanders are on the ground there, helping to direct the Houthis. Saudi Arabia had announced on Monday that Riyadh was halting trade links and air traffic with the Islamic Republic.

But whether or not they meant to raise the heat in a tense rivalry that already underpins wars across the Middle East, Saudi Arabia’s new rulers have shown no sign of regret. “The process of provoking tension must be stopped”.

The current crisis between the Mideast rivals was sparked by Saudi Arabia’s execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent opposition Shiite cleric, on January 2.

In the evening of the same day crowds of furious Iranian demonstrators stormed the building of Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Tehran and the consulate office in Mashhad.

Consumer activist group Mogatah also urged Saudi businesses to remove Iranian goods from their shelves, posting photos of Iranian products for sale in Saudi Arabia on social media along with calls to support the government’s policy. A number of Saudi allies have followed suit in taking diplomatic action against Iran.

Bahrain says it has broken up a militant Shiite group backed by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and the Lebanese Hezbollah.

In Iraq, Sunnis make up roughly 40 percent of the population, and about 60 percent of Iraqis are Shiites.

More than 1,040 people were detained in Shiite protests in eastern Saudi Arabia between February 2011 and August 2014, according to Human Rights Watch.

The Asian body’s president, and Federation Internationale de Football Association presidential candidate, Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim al Khalifa is a royal family member in Bahrain which has also cut ties with Iran.

Conversely, Iran has reason to use the diplomatic break to potentially grow its worldwide standing, he says.

Zarif said Sunni Saudi Arabia had engaged in a series of “direct provocations” toward Shi’ite Iran, including the execution of Nimr and what he described as “persistent mistreatment” of Iranian pilgrims visiting Mecca. The violence in Iran will embolden Saudi hard-liners who insist the Shiites at home and overseas are a threat and must be dealt with accordingly.

Asked about the diplomatic post attacks, Mr. Mohammed al-Nimr said it was “not acceptable”.

“With regards to our relationship with Russian Federation, we believe that the extent of trade we have with Russian Federation is not in line with the size of our respective economies”. “About my brother, we were hoping to end it in a political way rather than in blood”.