Saudi Arabia gave an apparent warning to regional rival Iran on Wednesday not to intervene in the conflict in Iraq, which it said could escalate to full civil war with implications beyond Iraqi frontiers.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), a fellow Sunni Muslim Gulf dynasty, announced it was recalling its envoy to Baghdad for consultations, and criticized what it called the sectarian policies of Iraq's government, an ally of Shiite power Iran.
Their statements coincided with an Iranian warning that Tehran would not hesitate to defend Shiite Muslim holy sites in Iraq against "killers and terrorists," following advances by Sunni militants there.