Saudi & Iranian Foreign Mins Hold Call Amid Gaza & Shipping Tensions

Saudi state media has confirmed a phone call between the foreign minister and his Iranian counterpart earlier today. Saudi Gazette: "Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan received a phone call on Thursday from his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. During the call, the ministers reviewed bilateral relations between the two countries and discussed ways to develop them in various fields.They also discussed the evolving situation in the region, especially in the Gaza Strip and its surroundings, and the efforts being made in this regard."

• The call comes amid a further escalation in tensions in the Middle East, with the Iranian navy seizing a Marshall Islands-flagged tanker, the St Nikolas, carrying Iraqi crude bound for Turkey. Reuters reportsthe seizure is in "retaliation for the confiscation last year of the same vessel and its oil by the United States, Iranian state media reported, a move likely to stoke regional tensions."
• The escalation in Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea has done little to damage Saudi-Iranian relations, with the Saudi's conspicuously absent from the nations involved in Operation Prosperity Guardian seeking to counter the Houthi attacks.
• Riyadh has proved reluctant to potentially damage the newly-improved relations with Tehran by siding with the US at a time of rising antipathy towards Washington in the region amid the US' support for Israel in its war on Hamas in Gaza.