S/Arabia asked to replace envoy who riled Shi’ite militias

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 and militia leaders. The request by Baghdad’s Shi’ite-led government underscores the depth of enmity between Sunni and Shi’ite regional powers as sectarian […]

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 and militia leaders.
The request by Baghdad’s Shi’ite-led government underscores the depth of enmity between Sunni and Shi’ite regional powers as sectarian conflicts rage in Syria, Yemen and Iraq.
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 Islamic State militants who control swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria and have claimed bombings in Saudi Arabia.