Iran supreme leader condemns Saudi embassy attack

Iran accused the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) of bowing to Riyadh’s agenda after the world Muslim body condemned Tehran over the attacks on Saudi diplomatic missions in the country.

Dhaka, which earlier condemned the attacks on the Saudi embassy in Tehran and its consulate in Mashhad, has fully endorsed the OIC joint communiqué issued yesterday in Jeddah saying such attacks are clear violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic and Consular Relations.

Such “aggressions” contravened worldwide law as well as the OIC charter, said the communique, which member state Iran rejected.

The meeting supported the legislative and legal measures taken by Saudi Arabia to counter aggressions against its diplomatic and consular missions in Iran.

“These figures are deeply worrying, showing that the United Kingdom continued to dispatch huge amounts of weaponry to Saudi Arabia despite overwhelming evidence that the Saudi war machine was laying waste to Yemeni homes, schools and hospitals”, said Allan Hogarth, Amnesty International’s head of Policy and Government Affairs, to the London-based Independent newspaper.

“Iran recruits militias in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen”, the official said, further accusing Iran of supporting “terrorism” and carrying out assassinations.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister Abbas Araqchi told Reuters on the sidelines of the meeting: “My hope is after this conference tension is not escalated, I hope the conference plays its role to deescalate the situation”.

The OIC calls itself the collective voice of the Muslim world. Ten US sailors who were aboard two patrol craft were etained for 15 hours by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on January 12 when they inadvertently entered Iranian territorial waters. China, France and Pakistan have all sought a de-escalation.

The meeting underscored the importance of reinforcing relations of good neighborliness among the member states for the best interests of peoples, consistent with the OIC Charter.

Saudi Arabia then called for a meeting to discuss the fallout among foreign ministers of the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which includes Iran, but is headquartered in the Sunni kingdom.

Iran was the key to stabilising the Middle East, referring to conflicts in Syria and Yemen, the minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, said.

Khamenei also spoke for the first time Wednesday about the brief detention by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ naval force of 10 US Navy personnel who strayed into Iranian waters in the Gulf.

Riyadh had also called for an emergency meeting of the Arab League after the attack on its missions.

The 12-point statement expressed full support for the efforts of the KSA and all member states to combat terrorism.