Iranian diplomats leave KSA after expulsion orders

RIYADH: All Iranian diplomats left the Kingdom on Tuesday after being expelled by the Saudi government following the attacks on the Saudi Embassy in Tehran and its consulate in Mashhad, the second most populous city in Iran.
Confirming this, Osama Nugali, spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said, “All Iranian diplomats — around 30 — left the Kingdom late on Tuesday.”
These diplomats and officials were working for Iran Embassy in Riyadh and Iranian Consulate in Jeddah, he said.
The diplomats are returning to Tehran in line with the announcement of expulsion made by Adel Al-Jubeir, minister for foreign affairs, here on Sunday night.
The Saudi government had given Iran’s diplomats 48 hours to close their embassy and consulate and leave the country. The Kingdom has also evacuated its diplomats from Iran and closed its embassy in Tehran following Saturday’s attacks, which Al-Jubeir said could not have happened without the Iranian regime’s tacit consent.
Ahead of the diplomats’ departure, the Iranian flag still flew atop the country’s embassy building at the Diplomatic Quarters in Riyadh but only a few people, particularly workers, could be seen in and out of the premises.
Arab News visited the Diplomatic Quarters and found Iranian Embassy wearing a deserted look. Similar were the cases of other friendly countries, which have either expelled Iranian diplomats or downgraded their diplomatic ties.
In fact, the Kingdom’s allies still continue to move against Iran, with Kuwait withdrawing its ambassador and delivering a protest over the attack on Saudi embassy in Tehran.
Bahrain and Sudan have also severed ties with Iran and the UAE has downgraded its diplomatic mission.
Mohammed Bin Moammar, a former member of Shoura Council, said that “the diplomatic tiff will worsen if Iran does not apologize and if Tehran regime does not take substantial corrective measures.”
He said that the foreign ministers of Arab League and GCC states are meeting on Saturday and Sunday respectively to take stock of the current volatile situation.