Iraq asks Saudi Arabia to replace envoy that riled Shi’ite officials

Iraq asked Saudi Arabia on Sunday to replace its ambassador in Baghdad after his comments about Iranian involvement in Iraqi affairs and the alleged persecution of Sunni Muslims angered local Shi’ite Muslim politicians.

Iraq asked Saudi Arabia on Sunday to replace its ambassador in Baghdad after his comments about Iranian involvement in Iraqi affairs and the alleged persecution of Sunni Muslims angered local Shi’ite Muslim politicians.

Riyadh only reopened its embassy in Baghdad in December after keeping it shut since the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Thamer al-Sabhan was the first Saudi ambassador appointed since the reopening, which was seen as heralding closer cooperation in the fight against the so-called Islamic State militants who control swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria and have claimed bombings in Saudi Arabia.

“The presence of Sabhan is an obstacle to the development of relations between Iraq and Saudi Arabia,” Iraqi Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamal said in comment.