Saudi Arabia executed six Iranian nationals for drug smuggling, state news agency SPA reported on Wednesday, prompting Tehran to summon the Saudi ambassador according to media reports.
Saudi authorities have ramped up efforts to combat drug smuggling in recent years, with significant arrests and seizures reported regularly © Mena Today
Saudi Arabia executed six Iranian nationals for drug smuggling, state news agency SPA reported on Wednesday, prompting Tehran to summon the Saudi ambassador according to media reports.
The Saudi interior ministry said the six Iranian nationals were arrested and charged with smuggling hashish into the kingdom, according to SPA, and were given the death sentence.
The statement did not mention when the executions were carried out.
In response, Tehran summoned Saudi Arabia's envoy in Tehran to "strongly protest" the executions, Iranian media reported.
"A note of strong protest from Iran, highlighting the incompatibility of this action with the overall judicial cooperation between the two countries, was conveyed to him. The necessity of providing an adequate explanation on this matter was emphasized," Iranian media reports said.
Under a deal brokered by China in 2023, Tehran and Riyadh re-established relations after years of hostility that had threatened stability and security in the Gulf and helped fuel conflicts in the Middle East from Yemen to Syria.
Reporting by Parisa Hafezi
Israel stepped up airstrikes on Syria overnight, declaring the attacks a warning to the new Islamist rulers in Damascus as it accused their Turkish allies on Thursday of trying to turn the country into a Turkish protectorate.
The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates has issued a forceful condemnation following a wave of Israeli airstrikes across the country, denouncing the attacks as a flagrant violation of international law and Syrian sovereignty.
Israel launched airstrikes on military airbases and infrastructure sites in the Syrian cities of Damascus, Hama and Homs on Wednesday, the Israeli military said.
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