Iran widely condemns Saudi execution of Shiite leader

Iran'sleadersonSundaystronglycondemnedtheexecutionofprominentShiiteclericNimral-NimrbySaudiArabia.

Iran'sSupremeLeaderAyatollahAliKhameneicondemnedasa"politicalmistake"al-Nimr'sexecutionandsaidthat"divinevengeance"isawaitingtheperpetratorsintheArabstate.

"Theoppressedclericneitherencouragedpeopletotakearmedactionnorhadbeeninvolvedinconspiracy.Al-Nimrwasonlyanoutspokencriticthatpursuedpromotionofvirtueandpreventionofvice"onthebasisofhisreligioushonor,"KhameneiwasquotedassayingbyTasnimnewsagency.

TheSaudiofficialswill"verysoon"paythepriceforsheddinghisblood,hesaid,addingthat"theIslamicworldandtheglobeshouldfeelresponsibilityforthisissue."

Meanwhile,PresidentHassanRouhanionSundayslammedtheSaudi"crime"ofexecutingShiiteleaderandsaidsuchanactiononlyservessectarianinterests.

Hedescribedtheexecutionas"anon-Islamicandnon-humanactcarriedoutwiththepurposeofadvancingsectarianpoliciesandencouragingterrorismandextremism,"officialIRNAnewsagencyreported.

Theexecutionofal-NimrhasviolatedhumanrightsprinciplesandIslamicvalues,thenewsofwhichhastriggeredawaveofgriefacrosstheIslamicworld,headded.

Also,Iran'sForeignMinisterMohammad-JavadZarifonSundaydescribedtheexecutionofal-Nimras"anotherstepindisseminatingdividingpolicies"intheregion.

IntelephoneconversationswithsomeofhisregionalcounterpartsandUNSecretary-GenaralBanKi-moon,ZarifcondemnedtheSaudi"inhumanaction"ofexecutingthecleric,sayingthatthiswas"inlinewithspreadingdiscordandprotectingextremismwhichhasturnedtheworldintothehellofbloodshed,"accordingtoIRNA.

OnSunday,hundredsofIraniansstagedarallyoutsidetheSaudiEmbassy'sheadquartersinTehrantoprotestagainsttheexecutionoftheleadingreligiousfigure.

TheprotesterschantedvariousslogansagainstSaudiauthoritiesandcondemnedtheexecutionofNimral-Nimr.

OnSaturday,theSaudiInteriorMinistryannouncedthatprominentShiiteal-Nimrand46othermenwereexecutedonterrorcharges.

TheprotestersalsochantedslogansagainsttheUnitedStatesandIsraelandsetablazetheirflags.

TheynamedastreetadjacenttotheSaudiEmbassyaftertheslaincleric,callingit"Shahidal-Nimr"or"martyral-Nimr."

Simultaneously,anotherprotestrallywasheldinthePalestinesquareofthecapital.Theyalsochantedanti-SaudislogansandsetonfiretheflagsoftheUnitedStatesandIsrael.

Attheendoftherally,itwasannouncedthatanotherprotestgatheringwillbeheldinTehran'scentralImamHoessinSquareonMonday.

Sunday'srallieswereextensionoftheviolentproteststhatbrokeoutinIranonSaturdayfollowingthespreadoftheexecutionnews.

AngrymobsraidedandsetfireontheSaudiEmbassyinTehranlateSaturdayandpolicetriedtodrivetheprotestersawayaftertheybrokeintoitscompound.

TehranPoliceChiefSardarSajediniasaidthatpolicearrestedsomeofthoseangrymobswhohad"illegally"ransackedtheembassy.

"Unfortunately,some(whogatheredbeforetheembassy)threwstonesandMolotovcocktailsattheembassywhichcausedfiretothebuilding,"SajediniawasquotedassayingbyTasnimnewsagency.

AlsoonSaturday,agroupofprotesterssetablazepartsoftheSaudiConsulateinIran'snortheasternreligiouscityofMashhad,Tabnaknewswebsitereported.

TheprotestersgatheredinfrontoftheconsulateandchantedslogansagainsttheSaudiauthorities,accordingtothereport.

TheypulleddowntheflagofSaudiArabiafromthebuildingoftheconsulateandthrewhand-madecrackers,whichcausedfireinpartsofthebuilding,itsaid.

OnSunday,Tehran'sProsecutorGeneralAbbasJafariDolatabadisaidthatpolicehavearrested40protesterswhoraidedtheSaudiEmbassyinTehranonSaturdaynight,Iran'sLaborNewsAgencyreported.

Thejudiciaryhasissuedarrestwarrantsagainstothersinvolvedinstormingtheembassy,Dolatabadiwasquotedassaying.

InanannouncementonSaturday,Iran'sForeignMinistryurgedthepolicetoprotectthediplomaticcompoundsofSaudiArabiainthecountry.

Earlierintheday,Iran'sForeignMinistrysummonedSaudicharged'affairesinTehranandstronglycondemnedtheexecutionofal-Nimr.

IranianDeputyForeignMinisterforArabandAfricanAffairsHosseinAmir-AbdollahianconveyedthestrongprotestoftheIslamicrepublictotheSaudienvoy,Ahmedal-Muwallid,overwhathecalledthe"irresponsiblebehavior"oftheSaudiofficialsinthisregard,thestateTVreported.

AlsoonSunday,HezbollahchiefSayyedHassanNasrallahinatelevisedspeechlaunchedablisteringverbalattackagainstSaudiArabiaovertheexecution.However,hewarnedagainstturningtheissueintoasectarianconflict.

0Morocco'sForeignMinistrysaidinastatementthatthecountryisconcernedthatthesituationcouldtakeanunmanageabledimension,andcountsonthewisdomofSaudiandIranianofficialstopreventthecurrentsituationfromspreadingtoothercountriesoftheregionalreadyfacingmanychallengesandvariouselementsoffragility.