Saudi Arabia slams Iran over probe into attacks on missions

New Delhi Aug 3 (IANS) Saudi Arabia has slammed Iran for not allowing a Saudi diplomatic team to be a part of an investigation into attacks on the Gulf kingdom s embassy and consulate in Iran last year.

A statement from the Saudi Arabian Embassy here on Thursday said that despite initial approval Iran denied the Saudi team a role in probing the attacks on its embassy in Tehran and the consulate in the Iranian city of Mashhad in January last year.

On January 2 2016 Saudi Arabia executed Shaykh Nimr al-Nimr a prominent Shia cleric and 46 others on terrorism offences. After the execution protesters stormed the Saudi embassy in Tehran and the consulate in Mashhad.

Iran s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Hassan Rouhani later condemned the attacks.

"Iran s refusal to allow the presence of a diplomatic team in the investigations confirms that it is neither serious about conducting fair and transparent inquiries nor about pursuing the real culprits behind the attacks " the Saudi statement said.

--IANS
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