Qatar says its ambassador to return to Iran

EghtesadOnline: Qatar has announced that its ambassador to Tehran will be returning to Iran around 20 months after he was recalled following demonstrations held in front of Saudi embassy in Tehran.

News ID: ۷۴۳۴۸۷

26 August 2017

"Qatar announced that its ambassador to Tehran will return to resume his diplomatic duties," said the Qatari Foreign Ministry's information office in a statement posted on its website on Wednesday.

According to PressTV, Qatar initially recalled its ambassador to Iran after demonstrations were held in front of the Saudi embassy in Tehran and the Arab country’s consulate in the northeastern city of Mashhad by angry protesters censuring the Al Saud family for the killing of prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr (pictured below) as part of a crackdown on Shias mostly residing in the kingdom's Eastern Province.

The ambassador’s return was announced amidst a political conflict between Qatar on the one hand, and Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates, which cut their diplomatic ties with Doha in early June, accusing it of sponsoring terrorism. Qatar has rejected the claim.

The statement also noted that Doha wishes to bolster ties in all fields with Iran, and that Qatar’s Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani discussed "bilateral relations and means of boosting and developing them" in a telephone call with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Earlier in the day, Zarif expressed Iran’s concern about the standoff between Qatar and the Saudi-led block.

“Despite our disagreement with both sides, we have asked them to resolve their disputes through dialogue and negotiations,” Zarif said, underlining the need for “good relations” between the countries of the region.