Saudi Arabia cuts ties with Iran, foreign minister says

[Ptarmigan]

Saudi Arabia cuts ties with Iran, foreign minister says
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2016/01/03/saudi-arabia-cuts-ties-with-iran-foreign-minister-says.html?intcmp=hpbt1

Saudi Arabia cut ties with Iran, the Kingdom’s foreign minister announced on Sunday, deciding "enough is enough" with the Islamic Republic, according to a source with knowledge of the Saudi government's thinking.

"Enough is enough," the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Reuters. "Again and again Tehran has thumbed their nose at the West. They continue to sponsor terrorism and launch ballistic missiles and no one is doing anything about it. The Saudis really don't care if they anger the White House." 

The move comes amid escalating tensions between the countries following Saudi Arabia’s execution of a prominent Shiite cleric on Saturday. A group of Iranians attacked the Saudi Embassy with Molotov cocktails and stones earlier Sunday following the death of Sheikh Nimir al-Nimir, and the Saudis have indicated they don't believe the Iranian government tried to stop the protesters.

Saudi Arabia had enough with Iran. Relationships between the two have always been acrid. If there is anything those two hate besides Israel and America, it is each other.

In 1979, America severed ties with Iran.

In 2015, Saudi Arabia severed ties with Iran.

[Ptarmigan]

Saudi-Iran crisis a rebuke for US policy
http://news.yahoo.com/saudi-iran-crisis-rebuke-us-policy-region-203515820.html

Washington (AFP) - Washington's single-minded pursuit of the Iran nuclear deal damaged its alliance with Saudi Arabia, experts say, and fed the escalating crisis in the Gulf.

The United States failed to manage its traditional Sunni Arab allies in the region while it reached out to mend ties with their bitter Shiite foes in Tehran.

As a result, experts warn, Washington has suffered a loss of influence at a time when it needs to implement the nuclear accord and work with both Tehran and Riyadh to end the Syrian war.

Middle East is a lost cause.

[Ptarmigan]

Mideast tensions soar as Saudi Arabia rallies countries to cut ties with Iran
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/bahrain-cuts-ties-with-tehran-as-crisis-widens-in-saudi-iran-split/2016/01/04/145c8824-b271-11e5-8abc-d09392edc612_story.html

BEIRUT — The Middle East slid dangerously closer to regional conflict Monday after Saudi Arabia rallied its Sunni allies to sever diplomatic ties with Iran, prompting alarmed appeals for restraint from powers across the globe.

Bahrain and Sudan joined Saudi Arabia in cutting off relations with Iran, and the United Arab Emirates, a key Iranian trading partner, recalled its ambassador from Tehran, as the fallout from the execution of a prominent Shiite cleric in Saudi Arabia on Saturday heightened sectarian tensions across the Middle East.

The Obama administration, caught in the middle by its quest for a closer relationship with Iran and its long-standing alliance with Saudi Arabia, said it hoped Tehran and Riyadh would dial back the hostile rhetoric that has fueled the worst crisis between the regional rivals in decades.

More Muslim countries are cutting ties with Iran, Bahrain, Sudan, and United Arab Emirates.

Arab and Persian animosity runs really deep. They hate each more than Israel and America.

[Ptarmigan]

White House refuses to explain delay in Iran sanctions
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/white-house-refuses-to-explain-delay-in-iran-nuclear-sanctions/article/2579524

A White House spokesman on Monday declined to say why the Obama administration changed course and decided to delay sanctioning Iran for its illegal ballistic missile tests, but also rejected the idea that the sanctions were delayed because of pressure from Tehran.

"Ultimately we will impose those financial penalties, we'll impose those sanctions, at a time and place of our choosing, when our experts believe that they will have maximum impact," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said on Monday. "And those decisions are not subject to negotiation by the Iranians — or anybody else for that matter."

The administration was expected to levy new sanctions on companies and individuals involved in Tehran's ballistic-missile program on Wednesday but then on Thursday did an about-face.

[thundley4]

Obama stands with Iran and rebukes Saudi Arabia.