Turkey slams Iranian reports linking Erdogan to execution

A Foreign Ministry statement released late Thursday says Turkey protested reports suggesting that the execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr was linked to Erdogan's recent visit to Riyadh.

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Iranian and Turkish demonstrators hold pictures of Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr as they protest outside the Saudi Embassy in Ankara, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2016, following Saudi Arabia’s execution of 47 prisoners in one day. Saudi Arabia announced the execution of Sheikh al-Nimr, convicted of terrorism charges, on Saturday along with 46 others, including three other Shiite dissidents and a number of al-Qaida militants. The placard at the center reads: ” O martyr, your path is our party.”(AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici)

Turkey has summoned the Iranian ambassador to demand an end to reports in Iranian state media linking Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Saudi Arabia’s execution of a Shiite cleric.

A Foreign Ministry statement released late Thursday says Turkey protested reports suggesting that the execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr was linked to Erdogan’s recent visit to Riyadh.

The ministry said: “We strongly condemned statements that accuse our president and asked that these kinds of publications are halted.”

It also criticized attacks on two Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran.

Turkey’s government has urged both Riyadh and Tehran to ease tensions, criticizing both the execution of the cleric and the attacks on missions. Erdogan said later however, that the executions were Saudi Arabia’s internal affair.

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