 "France, Germany condemn Saudi execution of Shia cleric")
France and Germany today condemned Saudi Arabia's execution of 47 prisoners, including a Shiite cleric, and voiced concerns about growing tensions in the Middle East following riots in Shiite-dominated Iran.
France "deeply deplores Saudi Arabia's execution yesterday of 47 people, including a Shiite religious leader," the foreign ministry said in a statement, calling on leaders in the region to "do everything to avoid exacerbating sectarian and religious tensions."
France opposes the death penalty "in all places and circumstances," the statement added.
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The condemnation from Paris was echoed in Berlin.
"The death penalty is an inhumane punishment that we reject in all circumstances," a German foreign ministry spokesman told AFP. "The execution of (imam) Nimr Baqr al-Nimr reinforces our current concerns about the growing tension...In the region," he said.
Nimr was a driving force behind anti-government protests in Saudi Arabia in 2011.
His execution, along with other Shiite activists and Sunnis accused of involvement in Al-Qaeda attacks, sparked demonstrations in Iran, Iraq and Bahrain as well as among Shiites in Saudi Arabia's oil-rich Eastern Province.
In Tehran, furious protesters ransacked the Saudi embassy yesterday after setting it alight.
