Iran on Thursday said Saudi Arabia warplanes had attacked its embassy in Yemen’s capital. Riyadh has now said it would investigate the accusation.
The Saudi-led coalition, fighting in Yemen, will investigate Iran’s accusation that coalition jets targeted its embassy in Sanaa on Wednesday night.
The strikes in Sanaa targeted missile launchers used by the Houthi militia to fire at Saudi Arabia, coalition spokesperson Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri claimed.
Saudi and its Arab allies, backing Yemen’s government, have been battling Shi’ite rebels in the country known as Houthis. The rebels have access to Yemen’s supply of Soviet-era Scud missiles and have fired several across the border during the conflict.
Asseri added, the group has used civilian facilities including abandoned embassies in the past. He also said the coalition had requested all countries to supply it with coordinates of the location of their diplomatic missions. He said accusations made on the basis of information provided by the Houthis “have no credibility”.
Iran’s government, on Thursday, banned all imports of products made in Saudi Arabia, Iranian student news agency ISNA reported. The decision was made in a cabinet meeting chaired by President Hassan Rouhani, it said.
(With inputs from agencies.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)