Why did Saudi Arabia execute Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr now?
The Saudis had Nimr in custody since 2012, sentencing him to death in 2014. The cleric had been a vocal critic of Saudi Arabia's ruling royal family for years, going as far as threatening Shiite secession in the minority's eastern homeland in 2009.
The Jan. 2 execution of al-Nimr, alongside 46 others, mostly al-Qaida members, sparked a crisis with Iran. Protesters in Tehran set the Saudi Embassy on fire, and the Iranian government threatened "divine revenge" against the kingdom. Riyadh severed diplomatic and commercial ties with Tehran, and Saudi allies Bahrain, Sudan and the United Arab Emirates filed diplomatic protests.