RIYADH: Iran will reopen its embassy in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, according to a diplomatic source in Riyadh, nearly three months after the stunning revelation of a seven-year break in diplomatic ties between the two most significant regional powers in the Gulf.
Tehran and Riyadh suspended ties in 2016 when Iranian protestors assaulted Saudi diplomatic offices in the aftermath of the killing of Saudi Shiite preacher Nimr al-Nimr.
According to an unnamed diplomatic source in Riyadh, the reopening of the Iranian embassy will take place on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. local time (15:00 GMT) in the presence of the authorized Iranian ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
Last month, the state-run English-language daily Iran Daily stated that Tehran had “appointed high-ranking diplomat Ali Reza Enayati as the new ambassador to Saudi Arabia.” However, the appointment was not formally publicized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Enayati is presently the Deputy Foreign Minister after serving as ambassador to Kuwait during the administration of moderate President Hassan Rouhani.
The former Iranian embassy building, which had been closed for years, will reopen after being thoroughly repaired. /AFP
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