Iranian cleric predicts fall of Saudi government over Nimr execution

Dubai: A prominent cleric with close links to Iran's ruling establishment denounced the execution on Saturday of a Saudi Shi'ite cleric and predicted the repercussions would bring down the Saudi ruling family.

"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," Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami, a member of the Assembly of Experts and a Friday prayer leader, was quoted as saying by the Mehr news agency.

"The crime of executing Sheikh Nimr is part of a criminal pattern by this treacherous family ... the Islamic world is expected to cry out and denounce this infamous regime as much as it can," he added.