Ghashghavi: We Will Respond to the Execution of Three Iranians in Saudi Arabia with Diplomatic Measures

On Sunday, November 8, the Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned the Saudi chargé d'affaires in Tehran to protest the execution of three citizens of this country. In this context, Hassan Ghashghavi, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran, stated that Saudi Arabia has not 'considered bilateral relations' and that Tehran will take appropriate diplomatic action. According to AFP, the Saudi Ministry of Interior announced that three Iranians were executed on Sunday on charges of drug trafficking in the port city of Dammam, located in the eastern part of the country. The Saudi Ministry of Interior claims that these three Iranians attempted to smuggle a large shipment of hashish into Saudi Arabia by sea. According to the IRNA news agency, the head of the Social Affairs Department of the Iranian Foreign Ministry's Consular Affairs summoned the Saudi chargé d'affaires at 9 PM on Sunday and conveyed Tehran's protest regarding the execution of these three Iranians. In this context, Hassan Ghashghavi, the Deputy Minister for Consular Affairs, Parliament, and Iranian Affairs, stated: 'Saudi Arabia did not consider bilateral relations by executing three Iranian nationals, and Iran will take appropriate diplomatic action.' He clarified in an interview with IRNA regarding the case of these three Iranians: 'In 2011, the Saudi government announced that it had seized about 500 kilograms of drugs from a vessel with 11 crew members, consisting of six Pakistanis and five Iranians.' The Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran added: 'Four years ago, two of these Iranian nationals were gradually acquitted and returned to the country, but the other three were sentenced to death about a year ago after going through various legal proceedings, and according to the Saudi Ministry of Interior, their sentence was carried out today.' Hassan Ghashghavi, while stating that 'we also have the death penalty in our country,' added: 'However, the imposition of this penalty on foreign nationals is not considered a positive action in bilateral relations for any reason... We also have many foreign nationals who have been sentenced to death, but through diplomatic efforts and for various reasons, their execution has been prevented.' According to Amnesty International, Saudi Arabia has the highest number of executions in the world after China and Iran. The Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran also mentioned that a representative from the Iranian embassy attended the court sessions of these three individuals in Saudi Arabia. He, however, stated: 'Our then-ambassador had meetings with the then-Minister of Interior of Saudi Arabia and officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of that country, but they did not allow a lawyer to be appointed for these nationals, which is against international conventions, although they claim to have acted according to their laws.' Hassan Ghashghavi also stated: 'Unfortunately, Saudi Arabia followed the same procedure two years ago, and today, it did not consider bilateral relations.' The Deputy Foreign Minister of Iran referred to the execution of an Iranian citizen in Saudi Arabia in 2014. Saudi Arabia had stated that an Iranian national named 'Reza Abbas Fazel Adrisavi' was beheaded for 'smuggling a large amount of hashish by sea.' Tensions in Iran-Saudi relations have escalated in recent months following regional confrontations and a deadly incident in Mina.