Saudi Royal Family to be Toppled Over Death of Shia Cleric al Nimr

Libyan News

Saudi Arabia said Saturday it had executed 47 people in a single day, including a dissident Shiite cleric, Nimr al-Nimr, who had repeatedly spoken out against the government and the Saudi royal family.

Nimr had been convicted of inciting sectarian strife, sedition and other charges following his 2012 arrest.

Iran, Saudi Arabia’s regional rival, summoned the Saudi ambassador in Tehran to condemn the execution, the state-run IRNA news agency reported. The Shiite-majority nation issued a statement deploring the execution and warning that Saudi Arabia would pay a heavy price for its policies.

One of Iran’s most senior clerics has also predicted the fall of Saudi Arabia’s ruling family following the kingdom’s execution of Shi’ite preacher Nimr al-Nimr.

Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami’s comments came as Iran’s foreign minister warned Saudi Arabia would pay a ‘high price’ for following policies that led to the execution of al-Nimr and 46 others for ‘terrorism offences’.

Ayatollah Khatami who branded the House of Saud ‘treacherous’, told the Mehr news agency: “I have no doubt that this pure blood will stain the collar of the House of Saud and wipe them from the pages of history.