Saudi, Qatar, Oman convinced Trump to ‘give Iran a chance’: senior Saudi official

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman led efforts to talk US President Donald Trump out of an attack on Iran, fearing “grave blowbacks in the region”, a senior Saudi official told AFP on Thursday.

The Gulf trio “led a long, frantic, diplomatic last-minute effort to convince President Trump to give Iran a chance to show good intention”, the official said on condition of anonymity, adding that dialogue was continuing.

Some personnel were moved out of a major US military base in Qatar on Wednesday, and staff at US missions in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait were warned to exercise caution as fears mounted of a US attack over Iran’s crackdown on protesters.

The United States has repeatedly warned it could intervene against a deadly Iranian government crackdown on protests, while Tehran has said it would retaliate with strikes on US military and shipping targets. Many US bases and assets are located in the Gulf.

But after several threats Trump changed course, saying he had received assurances from “very important sources on the other side” that Iran would not execute demonstrators.

The Gulf efforts aimed to “avoid an uncontrollable situation in the region”, the Saudi official said.

“We told Washington that an attack on Iran would open the way for a series of grave blowbacks in the region,” the official added.

“It was a sleepless night to defuse more bombs in the region… the communication is still underway to consolidate the gained trust and the current good spirit.”