Saudi's Iraq ambassador denies cousin killed fighting for IS

Thamer al-Sabhan issued an online statement on Wednesday, refuting the claims that a slain Saudi IS fighter named Abdel Salam al-Sabhan was his relative.

"None of my family members have ever fought for [IS] or for any other extremist groups worldwide," the statement read.

"I don't have a cousin whose name is Abdel Salam al-Sabhan."

The ambassador recently came under fire in Iraq for his "meddlesome" comments, including accusations that Iran-backed militias known as the Hashd al-Shaabi were plotting to assassinate him.

Last week, Iraq officially asked Saudi Arabia to recall Subhan for "overstepping the boundaries of diplomatic protocol".

Iraqi media aligned with the Shia militias reported this week that the ambassador's cousin had been killed by pro-government forces during fighting near the IS bastion of Mosul.

The Hashd al-Shaabi also claimed on Thursday that Sabhan had been expelled from the country for failing to denounce his relative's affiliation to the jihadists.

A Saudi foreign ministry official confirmed to The New Arab on Thursday that the reports were "groundless".

"The ambassador has no relative with the name Abdel Salam al-Sabhan and the person in question does not belong to his family," the official said.

Saudi Arabia has long been critical of Iran's growing involvement in Iraq and the Shia militia forces that Baghdad has relied on to rid the country of IS.

Sabhan, who became the first Saudi ambassador to be posted to Iraq for 25 years last year, has often said in media appearances that the Shia militias have been exacerbating tensions with Sunnis.

Shia-led Iran and Sunni-led Saudi Arabia are regional rivals and broke off diplomatic ties in January after several years of frayed relations.

Tensions between the two regional powerhouses flared up again this week after Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Riyadh of "murder" over the deaths of more than 2,000 pilgrims at last year's hajj.