Middle East Report, the Sunni/Shia War Expands Again Jan. 3, 2016

Following Iran’s angry abuse over the execution Saturday of the prominent Saudi Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, the Saudi foreign minister announced Sunday that Riyadh had severed relations with Tehran. Riyadh asked Iran’s diplomatic mission and “related entities” to depart the kingdom within 48 hours. The minister said his government is determined not to allow Iran to undermine Saudi security. Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Sunday that the dead cleric was a martyr and warned the Saudis they would face “divine revenge.” Saudi Arabia evacuated its diplomats from Tehran, Dubai-based al-Arabiya TV reports after demonstrators stormed and set fire to its Tehran embassy Saturday.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called the Saudi Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, who was executed in Saudi Arabia along with 46 others for terrorism offences, a “martyr” and warned he Saudis they would face “divine revenge.” Protesters stormed the Saudi embassy in Tehran late Saturday, set fire to the building and damaged property before they were driven back by the police. Khamenei said the cleric had been executed unfairly for criticizing Saudi Arabia’s Sunni rulers and denied he was involved in covert plots or armed movements.
Rage over the execution has spread among Shiite communities in the Middle East. As demonstrations against the execution started in the Lebanese capital, the Saudi embassy in Beirut boosted its security and instructed its staff not to leave the compound.

In a televised speech on Sunday, Hizbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, pictured below, lashed out at Saudi Arabia and its royal family over the execution of Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr and 46 other Shiites the previous day. He called the execution an "alarming event", saying "the House of Saud might have taken what it did lightly but it is not an incident that can go unnoticed." Nasrallah also issued a blistering condemnation of the royal family and challenged its legitimacy, claiming "The House of Saud imposed itself on the Arabian Peninsula's people through massacres, murder and intimidation and the kingdom was created with British support and funding as part of a colonial scheme."

Repeating his threat to retaliate against Israel for the recent assassination of arch-terrorist Samir Quntar, Hizbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said in a speech on Sunday that "the power of Samir Quntar's blood is still forcing the soldiers and the officers of the enemy to hide in tunnels along the entire length of the border. They're waiting and we're waiting. They're scared." 

New Egyptian ambassador Hazem Khairat, pictured above, has arrived in Israel to take up the post that was vacant for three years since the last envoy was withdrawn in protest over Israel's anti-terror operation in the Gaza Strip. Khairat previously represented his country at the Arab League, in Syria and in Chile. 
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu welcomed the ambassador at the Sunday cabinet meeting. His arrival is another sign of the warming ties between Israel and Egypt since President Abdel Fatteh Al-Sisi assumed power.