Saudi embassy attackers in Tehran court

Twenty one men face charges of "disturbing the public order and damaging embassy buildings" after the Saudi embassy was stormed in Tehran in January.

embassy

Smoke come out from the windows of the burning Saudi Arabia embassy as Iranian protestors burned the embassy in Tehran. Source: AAP

Twenty-one men accused of storming Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran in January have appeared in a Tehran court, Tasnim news agency reported, weeks after President Hassan Rouhani urged the judiciary to take action.

The suspects are accused of "disturbing the public order and damaging embassy buildings", according to Tasnim.

Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic relations with its Shi'ite rival Iran after protesters attacked the kingdom's embassy in Tehran and consulate in Mashhad following Riyadh's execution of a prominent Saudi Shi'ite cleric.
The Iranian government promptly condemned the attack and Rouhani asked the judiciary to punish the protesters and to halt embassy attacks, which have recurred throughout the Islamic Republic 37-year history and often complicated its foreign policy.

Iranian demonstrators attacked the embassy of the United States in 1979, Kuwait in 1987, Saudi Arabia in 1988, Denmark in 2006 and Britain in 2011 - most of which have led to a breach in diplomatic relations.

None of the attackers in those incidents was convicted.

Iran's judiciary announced in April that more than 100 suspects had been arrested in relation to the attack on the Saudi missions and 48 had been charged. All were released on bail.

Speaking in the judiciary's annual gathering in June, Rouhani said the attackers had been identified and urged the courts to take action.

"People want to know how the judiciary will deal with those who attacked the embassy against the law and Iran's national security," Rouhani was quoted as saying by ISNA news agency.

"They are waiting to hear the verdicts for these rogue elements."

After reaching a nuclear accord last year with world powers, Rouhani had sought to ease strained relations with neighbours and Western powers.

But the embassy assaults dealt a blow to that effort and caused Saudi allies like Bahrain and Sudan to sever their relations and the United Arab Emirates downgraded its relations.


Share
Published 18 July 2016 6:52pm
Updated 18 July 2016 8:21pm
Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world