arabia, saudis view of this, he lived in saudi arabia, he was under saudi authority. what did they accuse him of and why did they execute him? >> they excused him of trying destabilize the monarchy in saudi arabia. the reason for that in 2011 when the arab spring began you did have protests erupting in the predominantly shia province, oil rich province, closer to iran than other parts of the country. the cleric who was executed at times called for even seceding, from the rest of saudi arabia, called for the expansion of rights. he was a very well-known prominent dissident in saudi arabia. and you know that's something that's not receive accepted in i arabia. he crossed numerous lines in saudi arabia in the eastern province and because of that the saudi arabian regime thought he was breaking allegiance with king abdalla the late king and then they charged hip with actually trying to destabilize the country and getting close to foreign influencers meaning iran. he was put on trial and sentenced to death, even though he was extente sentenced to dean 2014, that he should

saudi insider is live with us. and here the former british foreign secretary jack straw tells me the severing of ties is a serious blow to the fight against isis. >> it will make cooperation, which is essential, against isis and the jiedists and other extreme groups difficult. >> also ahead, a new year and year of change in china. the new two-child policy. >> good evening, everyone. and welcome to the program. we're in london. if anyone thought this new year would bring new hope for peace in the middle east, the dramatic escalation of the cold war between saudi arabia and iran could derail that possibility. sunni, saudi arabia, followed by bahrain and sudan have severed ties, and the uae has downgraded relations. they accused someone of terrorism after which a few dozen extremists stormed in tehran. the arrest was ordered of those responsible, and saudi arabia says it's severing all ties with tehran. >> we decided to cut off all diplomatic relations with iran and also all air traffic to and from iran. we'll be cutt

-saudi relationship. partly that's because, with the united states pumping out as much oil as it does, there is not the kind of dependency on the oil front, the economic front that there was, but there is a big dependency on the diplomatic front. and secretary kerry knows that getting the deal together in syria, both parts of it, the cease fire and the broader political arrangement is a very long shot, as phil said before, depend on having the saudis and the iranians at the table, both of them working in roughly the same direction. i think the saudis who never believed that this was going to happen together basically were sending a very large message to the u.s. that said if you're not going to crack down on iranian expansionism in the region, we will, and i think that was a lot of what was behind the execution of the shia cleric. >> rose: vali, explain to us, what is the basic split between shia and sunni? we know how they line up in terms of iran being shia and saudi arabia and jordan and others being e

amy: protest in the middle east after saudi arabia executes nimr baqr al-nimr and 46 others in saudi arabia's largest mass execution in decades. now iran supreme leader threatens divine intervention. saudi politicians, rulers and policymakers, have no doubt that divine intervention for this blood. god almighty will not part those who spilled the blood of innocent. amy: we will speak with ali al-ahmed, who was detained at the age of 14. we will speak to toby jones and bill hartung about u.s.-saudi relationship. 20 or's ago this month, lori berenson was sentenced and convicted to 20 years in jail for helping revolutionary movement in peru. today she is back home in the united states and free. >> i cannot deny my life. my life is what it was or what it is -- yes, there are things when i reflect upon what happened and say, you know, that is part of the reason why i take responsibility for my actions and i apologize because it is like i do acknowledge whether or not i am directly responsible horrific bloodshed in peru and i'm very sorry it happened. amy: we speak with once imprisoned u.s.

saudi foreign minister made the announcement a short time ago on saudi state tv.m the execution of 47 prisoners, principally a prominent shia muslim cleric, iran, a shia nation, saudi arabia, a sunni nation, protesters around the world have shown their frustration in the wake of this execution, including london, where cnn senior international correspondent frederik pleitgen is now. the saudis call this shia cleric, in effect a terrorist, that's why he was executed. the iranian regime, shia, see him as an opponent of the saudi regime. where's the truth in this? >> reporter: well, i mean, if you look at what, for instance, the united nations high commissioner for human rights, he heavily criticizes the execution of nimr. someone, yes, criticizes the saudi government, the royal family but no time called for violence. saudis see this very differently. if you look at what happened tonight what's transpired over past 24 hours, a lightning rod, this man was, and also the fact he was executed not just between saudi arabia and iran but principally throughout the entire reg

four iran, he was a symbol of saudi repression of the shias who live in saudi arabia, and for saudi arabiahe was a symbol of iranian meddling inside saudi arabia, iranian encouragement of the saudi shia to rise up and overthrow the saudi government. he was a symbol. that's why the iranian public reacted the way it did when he was executed, and that is what created this problem. charlie: there is also this. it is said that the united states urged them not to do it, and they went ahead and did it, and by that, they were sending a message to the united states. the saudi's are not happy about the relationship -- you know a lot about this. mike: i think they were sending three messages. the first message was to the iranians. we are not going to let you meddle in our internal affairs without there being a cost. number two was a message to their own people and to their shia population about what you cannot get away with. three, it was a message to the united states absolutely. charlie: what was the message to the united states? mike: the gulf arab states, saudi arabia in particular, deeply frustr

we have reached a point where we need to get tough with the saudi's. -- saudis.e need to demand the saudis like we have demanded many other allies around the world that they can not torpedo our policies, and we have expectations of them. wendy: that's why the people who benefit the most are isil. and why a bold and thorough strategy with lots of different prongs to it has to be carried out. i think that's what the president is trying to do. i think that is what is being advocated by others as well. that's really where the focus has to be, somehow or another, to get everybody in the region to pull in the same direction. we thought we were headed there in december, but we seem to be going a little bit off the rails now. a good: wendy makes point, there is a need for a big, bold strategy. but if you press american thecials on the record, administration was not willing to say anything yesterday that theeven mildly critical of saudi's other then they hope that they will respect human rights and the future. in fact, they were more critical of the iranians for the outbu

what i would say about that is saudi arabia understands that saudi arabia is a threat to saudi arabia. in many ways their a partner with us in the intelligence world -- harlie: even though it's sunni /sunni. phillip: isis threatens the kingdom. the problem is it's not their top priorities. the problem is we rank them differently. for the saudis iran is the top three. theand you get sad -- theand you get assad because of iran and then you get isis. so when they look at what they're doing, sure they want to fight against isis. they're more tolerant because they're fighting assad and they're fighting iran. and so that should be -- that's the problem is that it's just noss at the top of -- not at the top of the priority list. charlie: good and say what you had to say. then my question is are we seeing between the american foreign policy whether it's the national security council or the state department or even the pentagon competing factions as to what we ought to be doing having to do with this crisis? -- >> let me follow-up on what phil said. i think it's true that saudi arabia is very

of the saudi shi'a to rise up and overthrow the saudi government. he was a symbol. and that's why, that's why the iranian public reacted the way it did when he was executed and that's what created this whole problem. >> rose: there's also this. it is said that the united states urged them not to do it. and they went ahead and did it. and by that they were sending a message to the united states. because the saudis are not happy about the relationship. and you know a lot about this. >> i think they were sending three messages. first message was to the iranians, right. we're not going to let you metal in our internal affairs without there being cost, number one. number two, is a message to their own people and to their shi'a population. about what you cannot get away with. and three, it was a message to the united states, absolutely. >> rose: what was the message to the united states? >> the gulf arab states, saudi arabia in particular, deeply frustrated with the united states over a number of issues. >> rose: what were those issues, the red line in sy

the dispute began on saturday when saudi arabia executed a well-known cleric. >> reporter: saudi diplomats on their way home with their families. as they were evacuated came similar action by some of the kingdom's allies, among them neighboring bahrain. after two days of demonstrations by protesters from its shia muslim majority. the gulf state that's closely allied to saudi arabia, accused iran of blatant and dangerous interference in arab countries and support for terrorism. the actions followed the arson attack at the saudi embassy in tehran. saudi arabia accused iran of doing nothing to prevent it. >> we decided to cut off all diplomatic relations with iran, and all air traffic to and from iran, all commercial relations with iran, and we will have a travel ban against people traveling to iran. >> translator: unfortunately the government of saudi arabia sees its interest in creating clashes and escalating tensions in the region. in recent years it has taken measures and followed policies in line with that. >> reporter: shia people across the middle east have been demonstrating after the

to saudi which xaers i.s.i.l. to saudi arabia. arabia. they're saying is there any they're saying is there any difference - compares. difference - compares. this graphic is fraught with this graphic is fraught with irony and contradiction. irony and contradiction. is it a valid question and is it is it a valid question and is it a valid question coming from eye a valid question coming from eye reason that puts more people to reason that puts more people to dpeth per capita than anyone dpeth per capita than anyone else in the world? else in the world? >> putting aside the messenger, >> putting aside the messenger, i think disturbing and troubling i think disturbing and troubling to the extent that a lot of to the extent that a lot of behaviour saudi arabia models is behaviour saudi arabia models is exactly where i.s.i.l. and exactly where i.s.i.l. and al-qaeda define inspiration. al-qaeda define inspiration. the notion that you should the notion that you should commit violence against commit violence against journalists and subject them to

what do the saudi's wants to? >> i think that they want the same thing they wanted yesterday to come in front of all arab countries. yesterday, they did the regional, today they want to do it in the whole arab perspective. two weeks or three weeks ago, they tried to establish a kind of islamic alliance considered by some people a sunni alliance against iran. i think they are trying to get support from all the region against iran. >> ok, let's pause and listen to what the arab leaders are saying in cairo right now after their extraordinary meeting. >> iran supports the militias to commit violence in some arab countries for so long time and the kingdom of saudi arabia and the arabs are saying enough is enough. if iran says it wants to positive role in the region, iran has to deal with the neighbors according to the good neighborhood and not to interfere into the internal affairs and to reject terrorism. iran can live in the region as a neighbor if iran stops these approaches, but if iran continues this approach, ira

he is saudi of shia belief. he wants shias and saudis to work together. he was in bahrain and eastern provence of saudi arabia. >> when you say, we have a minute left, you say we're not buying that much oil from saudi arabia and middle east in general, but really oil is a world commodity. >> absolutely. >> everything goes into the pot and gets withdrawn from the pot. >> we don't have to buy it. here is the thing most people don't understand. our total import of oil, right now three million barrels per day in october came from canada, two million barrels a day from mexico, venezuela and other parts of central and south america. so we don't need to be importing oil from middle east. china needs to have it. let china do the peace keeping then. you know, they need it, they can >> that is a topic for another day. thank you for being here. please come back, fascinating discussion. >> it was a pleasure. i enjoy your show. >> thank you. we'll be right back. >> "nevada newsmakers" is brought to you in part by the pro group management, and the >> this is "nevada ne

all of these countries are part of the saudi-led, lycian -- the saudi-led coalition. there were tensions even before the execution. had to know arabia how provocative that execution was going to be. why would it go ahead with it anyway? >> one of the possible explanations is that the saudi royal family could be trying to shield public attention away from the mystic problems within the kingdom. saudi arabia has announced a few of 20% of gase prices. the government had to take this unpopular stand because of the record $98 billion budget deficit. the low oil prices on the market, but because of the war in yemen. so escalating tensions with iraq could be a strategy, pointing the finger at an external enemy. genie: thank you for that. that is our correspondent reporting from dubai. now to turkey, where the bodies of 21 migrants have washed up on the coast of the agency -- of aegean sean. jester mortimer reports. jasper: the turkish news agency is reporting that eight of them were rescued at sea. ashore managed to swim and landed on the turkish beach. suffering from hypoth

saudi arabia severing diplomatic ties with iran. what's the likely next reaction, do you think, from iran? >> yeah. well, we saw, interestingly, a number of contrasting messaging coming out of iran over the past couple of days. we saw a state news agencies and the supreme leader having a hard line response, calling -- suggesting there would be a divine retribution for what's happened. but then we also saw condemning of the protesters who stormed the embassy in tehran. there was a bit of a mixed message. i think there was some calm heads inbetween all of this war of words. so i think iran's got a really serious challenge on its hands to keep things calm, but also to appease its own domestic audiences as well. many of whom who are concerned with problems with the west, but also concerned about what's happening in saudi arabia. >> we'll watch this very carefully. simon, mr. thanks for joining us and sharing your analysis with us. we appreciate it. >> thank you. >> israeli police are still searching for the su

by the way, he is a saudi arabian. he is not an iran in saudi arabia. so he was attempting to approach king abdullah and the rest of the saudi government and princes and say we need more inclusion of shia in our population. it was the opposite side of many in saudi arabia who the king sees as extremist and terrorists. so saudi arabia, if you look at it from their standpoint, they are trying to tamp down insurgencies and anyone that speaks against the kingdom or the king. they do not have freedom of speech like we do here in the united states. anything that is done in that way is considered a crime against the society. so, yes, this will inflame more shia in the region, as you've seen it already has, and it will be another match being held very close to a gallon of gasoline in the region. >> tom, is there a strategic balancing that must be struck here? we know the 40 arrests after the firing and bombing of the saudi embassy there showing the outrage in the country and across the world but also keep, yu know, rule of law in their own capital? >> victor, i

saudis accuse him of inciting terrorism in saudi arabia. they say he is calling for the peaceful overthrow of the saudi royal family. you can see at the moment the tensions escalated. the saudis have been aware for the potential of this. >> a complicated place for the united states to be diplomatically. long time ally, saudi arabia. the united states not happy with human rights issues in the country. the united states part of the nuclear deal with iran. interesting to see how the united states will react in the next few days. >> reporter: yeah. what you have here inside saudi arabia is not just saudi reaction and concern to the new approach with the united states and iran. you also have, if you go back to the arab spring of 2011, saudi arabia was disappointed with the united states not backing up its allies in the region. the tunisia president and the saudis recognized they need to look to themselves for the security in the region. they beefed up security forces. they have a huge defense spending on internal security and army that can face-

in the latest move in the deepening diplomatic crisis between saudi arabia and iran, the saudi governmentas announced it is cutting air traffic links with iran. >>> two attacks in baghdad. it's reported that the incident are in retaliation for the execution of a senior shia cleric in saudi arabia. >>> and global financial markets are in turmoil after mainland chinese shares drop 7% before trading was suspended for the day. >>> thousands of syrian refugees are enduring wintery conditions in lebanon's valley. snow has begun falling in the region and temperatures have plummeted about 200,000 syrian families in lebanon are especially at risk in the cold wings and months ahead. >>> yemeni government forces have announced a curfew in the southern city of aiden. airstrikes have resumed following an end to a cease-fire in december. the coalition has been bombing the shia houthi movement in the country for nine months. >> first they hit the gas stations with the missiles. and homes were destroyed. the plane came back and hit the home and gas station again with the largest missile ever to hit yemen

and saudi relations? ever since king salman took power last year, it does seem that he and the crown prince have wanted to have more concerted action against iran. is that because of the issues in the u.s.-saudi relations and maybe a lack of confidence that the saudis have in their american ally? >> i think we're seeing a government which is determined to show it will pursue its own security interest no matter who else may dislike it, may oppose it and i'm sure that there have been words exchanged between the americans and the saudis over the war in yemen for instance. although we are supporting them, it's with a sense that the sooner this is over the better, and get down to issues like syria. >> what do you read into the iranian letter to the united nations and the apology in saying that they will prosecute anyone who was involved in attacking the saudi diplomatic facilities? >> well, they are behaving responsibly correctly after the fact in terms of observing international practice. this is a basic viol

francine: how big of a mishap is this saudi arabia -- or saudi for saudi arabia?: i don't think this is right to call it a mishap. it might be that it was a deliberate step two register up relations, knowing the consequences of what would happen, both of the domestic shia minority and with ratcheting up tension with to run. look at thelair, i charts that we can show on this, but distinction between saudi arabia and iran -- the memory of this chart. this is normalized oil production of saudi arabia and life -- in white and iran in green. you can see saudi arabia building supply and crushing the price, why a wrong falls off a cliff and comes back, with that graphical tension, angus blair, what do you expect to be the response of the obama administration and secretary john kerry? john kerry has already been on the phone with regional with to wrong,so trying to see if there is a way to diffuse tension. it is a little of it too early for this to happen because both are working on their next steps and what they should be. we heard already on the way out looked ready. fr

the saudis have cut off relations with iran. they've given them 48 hours to leave saudi arabia. we've had a war of words here. we've had diplomatic relations cut off. there's the proxy relations between iran and saudi arabia, iraq, lebanon and beyond. that could also escalate because of the problems these two countries are having with each other now. these two have had very little love lost between them. they've never gotten along very well. this is as bad as it's gotten. people in iran are worrying this could escalate further. nobody thinks there will be any direct conflict between iran and saudi arabia, but in the regions where they're having these proxy wars, things could get much, much worse. the other fear also is that they're not going to be able to come to any conclusion on how to defeat isis and how to sort out the problem in syria. iran and saudi arabia for the first time were sitting around the negotiating table in have i naen with world powers trying to alleviate the situation in syria, but that's not going to happen any time soon anymore. i don't see saudi and irania

and we did criticize the saudi's.harlie: but you are saying they killed him mainly because the rest were sunnis, and therefore they had to have a shia that they would kill? ian bremmer: i am actually saying that is a bit part of it. i am saying that you see this all the time. if you don't want to be figure to only be pointed at you, and they see that wahhabism -- charlie: and did they assess the risk? ian bremmer: of course. charlie: and they probably talked about it for a while. ian bremmer: especially because right now, you know that you are going to cheese the americans off because we are trying to implement this iranian nuclear deal. which they hate, and they hate so much more than the israelis are the republicans. for the saudi's, this is real. this really threatens them. charlie: their top enemy is iran. ian bremmer: and oil. it's both. iranian section and the proxy wars. -- production and the proxy wars. i have had at least five clients call me up and asked me today, did i believe that the saudis were doing thi

saudi arabia is adamant he got a fair trial. it's not the first time diplomatic relations have been cut but there are fears it could cause more violence. >> the sunni dominated area is at the lowest point. we could witness further escalation of what has happened favorite 24 hours pours gasoline on a raging fire. >> in an incident in a village in eastern saudi where peek are mourning the death. the official saudi press agency reported one man had been killed and a child was injured. al nima's brother said he was told the cleric will be buried in an undisclosed location, a move that could cause more protests. andrew simmons, al jazeera. >> let's cross over to al jazeera's diplomatic editor james bays joining us from new york. before we get to any reaction from the united neighborhoods i am reading here. this is according to rioters, that saudi arabia is saying it is going to cut flights, trades with iran as well as ban visits. so this seems to be much more than a war of words at this point. what is the united nations secretary gen

saudi arabia responded.eaving tehran with a public relations challenge on its hands. >> iran was on the back foot trying to figure out how to cast the story. president hassan rouhani, the reformist media and the hard line media condemning the attacks, distance themselves and that as the narrative iran pushed back against. >> hassan rouhani's people trying to send a message out through its own media including the official newsagency say. >> saying look, we are trying to arrest the guys that breach the embassy. we know haverd liners are here, we are trying to stop that. >> the idea that the iranian media would sing from the same song sheet is unsurprising. it seldom happens. some news outlets are loyal to the leader. ayatollah khamenei. others are tied to the president hassan rouhani, considered a modernizer. others to the revolutionary guard. they don't necessarily coalesce. they have differing views and express them on the nuclear negotiations involving the u.s. on this story, involving saudi arabia, the new

inside saudi arabia. the reality of what we are seeing here is a ratcheting up of already significant tensions between the two countries. in yemen, saudi arabia and iran are fighting a proxy war. fighting a proxy war in syria as well. they have extreme protests over interests in saudi arabia and to iraq to the north of saudi arabia. this is another dimension to an escalating situation that fuels tensions in the regions. certainly puts the hopes and likelihood of getting a peaceful solution up and running this year in syria. makes that a more distant prospect. >> nic, a dramatic development. no question. wonders what type of internal pressures saudi arabia is under. you wonder the execution of the shi'a cleric, you wonder what the goal was and maybe they miscalculated the reaction in the broader midwest. >> reporter: i don't think they are miscalculating this. they have a new king. we wonder what the new king would be like. he is more robust. saudi arabia believes it is a stronger military and diplomatic f

i -- i remembered tom and his rule about not dating any saudis or meeting any saudis. but i felt that he had lived in the uk. he was educated. so then i just thought, well, you know, it should be safe enough. it should be okay. >> oh, hey. >> hi. >> he was a typical saudi man. i wouldn't say i was overly taken by him, you know, the way i had been with fred. but i just wanted to go and meet somebody and talk to them and, you know, i was really lonely. if i had known then what i know now, i would never have done it. i met him the next day. we went to the coffee shop. he was very westernized. he was wearing jeans and a t-shirt. >> how do you do? nice to meet you. have a seat. >> he spoke about how he wanted to leave saudi arabia and live in the west, that you had a much better life there. he could be who he was. so, you know, from that i didn't feel that i was in any danger whatsoever from him. after coffee, we went back to my compound. had sex, and he left after two hours. i was never going to have a relationship with him, you know. i didn't want a relationship with him.

execution of saudi--in saudi arabia of iranian shia cleric. all of that adding to tensions and security. that has analysts thinking that the supply of oil could be going down. that could push these prices up, but not enough to make up for the losses that we're seeing from china. so a down start to 2016 here in the united states for the markets. after what was a very flat 2015. >> kristen saloomey with the latest in new york. thank you. pro democracpro-democracy leaders investigate the disappearance of a boob publisher. he's the fifth employee from the publisher to go missing. hong kong's leader said there is no indication so far that chinese agents are involved in the disappearances, and that authorities there have no jurisdiction over hong kong. >> the prohibition under the basic law namely only legal enforcement agencies in hong kong have the legal authority to enforce laws in hong kong. no other law enforcement agencies outside of hong kong has such authority. >> we'll speak with the actor who is have taken on dangerous roles filming a dram

it is a dilemma but saudi arabia said that and not only saudi arabia.ve other muslims, other abrag arab countries with us and the international war talks about bringing peace to the region and they must understand what is going on in the region. it is a fight for freedom. a fight between people who want their freedom and a sectarian view of iran. >> reporter: thank you very much indeed, jamal and some breaking news just in, we just heard that bahrain has announced that it is cutting its diplomatic ties with iran so following in the footsteps of saudi arabia and breaking diplomatic ties with tehran. now members of syria's opposition as we've already mentioned a meeting in the saudi capitol riyadh and trying to agree on who exactly will take part in talks with president assad's government. those talks are due to take place two weeks time and staffan de mistura is expected to meet the opposition members. now yemeni government forces announced a curfew in the southern city of aiden and will start at 17grenich monday and last until early tuesday morning and

in yemen, which, remember, is right on the doorstep of saudi arabia. it's not removed the way syria is. and they see serious encirclement. just last week the u.s. responded to the firing of the missiles, illegal firing of the nuclear capable missiles by threatening trivial sanctions and then actually cancelling or postpo postponing the sanctions when iran protested and said they would increase their production of missiles. in other words, the u.s. would not even respond to an open provocation on the missile issue, and what they read is complete abandonment. they are now on their own, and then they're not going to have to face it rain yathe iranians allies on their own. >> the state department urged de-escalations and commenting on both sides say they're not interested in being a mediator. >> right. i think that the administration is quietly grumbling that this was a dangerous provocation on the saudis and it was a mass execution and they learned something they shouldn't have. if you look at the fact that they were joined by other sunni allies, iran, su

we are doing saudi arabia and iran, saudi and iran. when do they deliver barrels? in the next 2-3 weeks, we have the implement date, and at that moment, they are able to sell. the barrels could come very quickly. iran is going to take a long time, up to one year. now, that thinking within the trade community is that it could be delivering a lot of oil in weeks. tom: i like that analysis. is it priced into the market at $36 a barrel? javier: it is beginning to be while i think some beginningnian oil is to be priced into the market, i think there is still some skeptical traders and investors out there who do not believe that it will come so quickly. the moment that it happens, i .hink iran will price that is when we will see lower prices. that will coincide when refineries are going out of work , that is when we create the glut. francine: this brings us back to inflation across the world, especially eu inflation. zeros stayed close to the level. they only have one mandate, to put prices up. david: absolutely. we are seeing an extension over the last year and 18 month

where the saudi arabia embassy was ransacked, forces saudis to cut diplomatic ties. now to center of excellence of brain aging, u.a.e. and sudan, all of which tore up diplomatic relations complaining of possess interference. r riyadh has been accused of trying to shift the real crime, the execution of a cleric. and calling it names will not hurt it. >> for more than 30 years after the iranian resolution, great powers have severed ties with iran. saudi arabia is taking measures based on immature policies and inexperience. at the heart of the spat, saudi arabia is under pressure in its region, since its ally, the united states, struck a nuclear deal with iran. add to that the saudi military coalition fighting iranian supported houthi forces to the south of saudi in yemen, and iranian military involvement to the war in syria, and you have a recipe for the saudis to feel isolated in their desert kingdom. >> saudi arabia can sustain this for some time. the issue here is that at least for riyadh, the iranians have to understand that saudi arabia is going to combat a lot of

it is crucial for saudi arabia. once they come out of the meeting with a united stance, they go further, expand the influence of the arab league, arriving for other countries to join them. we have seen some countries, the crisis, them saying that we need to see more wisdom. not necessary cutting ties. they would like to move forward and ask for support. >> the rift between the two regional powerhouses raises the spectre of worsening violence in countries, where they back different countries, ie yemen, syria. we are seeing signs of further escalation. like in yemen, the saudis right up to the crisis with tehran, stopping the troops with the houthis. bashar al-assad said that they are continuing the air strikes, and are insisting that if they don't pull up the regions, the area they control will be an issue. saudi arabia says that it is more about a new opposition taking over, and bashar al-assad has to go. if this doesn't happen, the saudis will continue to provide assistance to the syrian opposition. >> we'll keep a

what makes saudi arabia -- ian: what makes saudi arabia a legitimate kingdom?- allows these 15,000 princes to run this country? it is the cash. charlie: the princes did not want to see their people in the streets attacking the saudi embassy. is beingou ask me who more responsible here, the iranians actually are. that's not popular. are saudi arabia right now, and you don't know that you have the cash to keep your people happy, you might not even have the cash to keep the princes altogether in a line, then you had better provide something. charlie: some intelligence officials say to me, this is all about the royal family. it's about their lack of respect for the president. ian: the american president? charlie: yeah. ian: it is certainly true that the u.s.-saudi relationship has deteriorated dramatically. there are many reasons. product --ergy american energy production, the fact that we have screwed up in iraq and afghanistan. there are many reasons. the factyou are saying that they did this had nothing to do with the displeasure with the relationship with the u

the saudi deputy crown prince. you put those guys together, you have leaders that are strong at home, they are fairly unpredictsable and are in an environment that is getting more challenging. >> the deputy crown prince is unpredictable because he is is young and inexperienced or because his views are such. >> because is he young, and inexperienced and his country is in a whole world of hurt right now. >> rose: it's about his country, not him. >> it's both. and also there is not a lot of constraint on him. he's able to act in relative impunity. the media is not going to criticize him. the judiciary is not going to anticipate cases like they do in brazil. >> rose: what about the crown prince. >> the crown prince is increasingly getting edged out. you actually see that in policies over the past month. >> rose: it is a father and son running the country. >> it seems to be. and the father trying to move the son along as past fast as possible while he can rlz because of the age. >> because of the age and health issues,

protesters set fire to the saudi arabiian embassy in tehran, the saudis and their allies, in responsegest ties with iran. >> reporter: saudi diplomats on their way home. as they were evacuated came similar action by some of the kingdom's allies, among them bahra bahrain. after two days of protests. the gulf state that is closely allied to saudi arabia accused iran of blatant and dangerous interference and support of terrorism. it followed the arson attack in teheran. saudi arabia accused iran of doing nothing to prevent it. a war of words is escalating. >> we decided to cut off all diplomatic relations with iran, we will be cutting off all air travel to and from iran, and have a travel ban against people traveling to iran. >> translator: unfortunately the government of saudi arabia sees interest in creating clashes and escalating tensions in the region. >> reporter: shia people across the middle east have been demonstrating after the execution of a man, and 46 others, were charged with plotting and carrying out terrorist attacks, targeting civilians and security forces. saudi arabia i

saudi arabia didn't want iran to be included in the region on processes.does not want iran to normalize relations with the west. from the very early on rejected the nuclear deal and tied the nuclear deal to regional issues. also saudi arabia is much more interested in saying the problem in the middle east is iran not i.s.i.s., for the west is not i.s.i.s. in 2016, going forward, if the u.s. wants to get ahead of the i.s.i.s. issue and end the war in syria, which i agree with randa, not difficult to see thousand vienna process will get us there, it has to be clear on what it expects of both sides in terms of cooperation. >> woodruff: serious repercussions everywhere you look. vali nasr, ran, randa slim, we k you both. >> woodruff: we've talked about it for months, now we are here: 2016. political director lisa desjardins explains how the presidential race has quickly hit another gear. >> reporter: just try and take it all in. the many candidates are scrambling as months of build-up are over, and the actual 2016 is here. it means a mounting frenzy of rallies

part of the saudi authorities? vali: i don't think the domestic protests are a source of worry for saudi arabia, because the saudis will immediately accuse all of the shiites in the eastern province of being iranian agents. that helps to rally the majority sunnis in saudi arabia in support of the government. i think what is more worrisome for saudi arabia is the fact that it now stands accused of having precipitated this latest crisis. this latest crisis cannot be blamed on iranian misbehavior. iran did not start this rices -- this crisis. it is clear that in europe and the united states, saudi arabia is being held accountable for escalating tensions in the middle east, diverting attention from the fight against isis, undermining the diplomatic process that was supposed to end the war in syria, and raising the possibility of greater conflict and instability in the region. i think that is the bigger problem for saudi arabia. tom: lastly, who do you think is going to emerge as being the biggest loser out of these eve

saudi arabia and gulf allies cut ties to iran after an attack on the saudi embassy. look like general motors investing in- is the right against uber. markets are tanking. we are deeply in the red. all stocks are down. i want to get to julie hyman with more on that news. >> that number is coming in worse than estimated. a 49 is what an -- is what economists said. this manufacturing number coming in worse than estimated. it is also a contraction at the path -- contraction at the fastest pace in six years. readings under 50 do indicate contraction. this adding to the already negative tone we have seen this morning with stocks deeply in the red. it looks like it will be the worst one day selloff for u.s. stocks. we had that steep decline in the correction. began in china, where he also had a steep selloff you the shanghai composite falling 5%. this being triggered by manufacturing numbers there as well. if we can take a look at some of those chinese stocks we have been missing and chinese groups on the move, down nearly 7% on the day. this is the etf that attracts the on

and saudi arabia. it already has its troubles recently, one being the iran nuclear deal with the u.s. saudi is very of the uncomfortable with that. but also this thought of decreasing u.s. dependence on staud did i oil. does something like this continue, a decline, a deterioration in the relationship between the u.s. and saudi arabia? >> i think it does, jim. look, this war in yemen has turned out to be a disaster. yemen as a country is being blown into rubble right now. you're having 20-some million people facing starvation at this point. washington does not support this war, nor did z it support a lot of saudi policies in the middle east. but there's nothing we can do about it. washington would love to find a way to tone this down as general hertling said. the possibility between a war between iran and saudi arabia is getting better by the day. and it's a war we couldn't control. bring the whole gulf down. as well as saudi oil supplies very quickly. i don't see how we can stop it, but i can tell you

the saudis accusing the iranians of undermining saudi arabia's security. this is something that the foreign minister said in a press conference tonight. it is something, of course, comes in the wake of that siege that took place in tehran of the saudi embassy where a mob of protesters, of iranian protesters, broke into the saudi embassy, set part of the building on fire, ransacked some other rooms. that, of course, comes after the saudis executed some 47 prisoners in saudi arabia including a very senior shia cleric. iran, of course, is the main shia country there in that region. now, the iranians, for their part, have tried to something like damage control throughout the course of sunday while the supreme leader went out and heavily criticized odd saudi arabia calling for, quite, divine revenge against saudi arab arabia's ruling family. the president hassan rouhani who's more moderate went out and criticized those who actually went into the saudi embassy saying this is something that was bad for iran and also vowed to bring those to justice who were part o

in yemen, on the border with saudi arabia, the saudi's say they are backed by iran. that struggle has played out. cease-fire's have come and go as recently as last week is a spire was abandoned. within iran, you may see a power struggle. ronnie initially came out and try to talk things back after the embassy was torched. this may be an opportunity for the hardliners. elections in six weeks and around and it puts the president in a precarious position because he has to show strength and that he can stand up to saudi arabia. at the same time, it is not in anyone's interest for this to spiral out of control. the region as a tinderbox. a lot of things can go wrong. to your point, there are power struggle everywhere and we do not know yet how this will play out. francine: thank you so much. let us get straight to our guest for the hour. he is a d10 fx research. great to have you on the program. a pretty brutal day across markets when you look at china stopping the trading and you look at the risk aversion and the yen rising and now the saudi oil struggle. >> the combinati

set fire of the saudi embassy in tehran. >> saudi diplomats on their way home from tehran. as they were evacuated came similar action by some of the kingdom's allies. among them neighboring bahrain. after two days of demonstrations by protestors from sheer shia majority. the gulf state closely allied to saudi arabia accused iran of blatant interference and support of terrorism. the rm actions followed th actii embassy fire. >> we'll be cutting off all commercial relations with iran and will have a travel ban against people traveling to ir iran. >> translator: unfortunately, the government of saudi arabia seems interested in causing tensions in the region and has aligned its spolg fo policies f. >> after the execution of nimr al-nimr, charged with plotting and carrying out terrorist attacks, targeting civilians and security forces. saudi arabia is adamant he got a fair trial. it is not the first time relations have been cut but fears that it could cause more violence. in eastern saudi arabia, one man had been killed and a child injured. al nimr's brother has been told the cl

saudi arabia is animate he got a fair trial. it's not the first time diplomatic ties have been cut but there are fears it could cause more violence. >> the shia dominated iran is at the lowest point with diplomatic ties. we could witness further escalations of what we have seen. >>> people are supporting nimr al nimr's death. the press agency reported one man had been killed and a child injured. al nimr's brother has been told the cleric will be buried in an jaundice closed location, a move that could cause more protests. >>> let's find out if there's been any reaction from the united nations, cross over to dip editor james bays joining us from the headquarters in new york. james. >> yes, we do have some reaction from the u.n. secretary general ban ki-moon some hours before the latest diplomatic repercussions, he issued a statement where he said he was deeply dismayed by the 47 executions, including that of sheik nimr and deplored the attack on the saudi embassy in iran. no response to the latest diplomatic repercussions and the