Midday Roundup: Saudi Arabia, Iran begin new year with war of words

Isolating Iran. The New Year is off to a rocky start in the Middle East after the Saudi Arabian government executed Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr on Saturday. Protesters in Iran attacked the Saudi embassy in Tehran hours after the execution, leading Saudi officials to cut diplomatic ties with Iran. Several of its close allies followed suit, including Bahrain and Sudan. The United Arab Emirates also announced plans to downgrade its diplomatic relations with Tehran. The escalating tensions are spreading fear around the globe, including in Russia and China. Officials in both countries called for calm. Iranian officials downplayed the embassy attack’s significance, noting no Saudi personnel were present at the time. “The Saudi government is looking … for some excuses to pursue its own unwise policies to further tension in the region,” Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Jaberi Ansari told reporters today. Analysts warn the simmering dispute between Shiite and Sunni countries could easily and quickly boil over into a full-scale military conflict.

Primary countdown. With less than a month to go until the first votes are cast in the race for the GOP nomination, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has moved into fifth place in an average of national polls—at right around 5 percent. That’s a half-point better than one-time frontrunner, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. With Bush’s campaign on the skids, he’s shifting strategy, cutting $3 million in advertising in Iowa and South Carolina. Instead, he’ll spend that cash on strengthening his ground game in early voting states.

Receding rivers. The historic rains have stopped, but flooding along the Mississippi River and its tributaries continues to push residents from their homes. Missouri and Illinois are taking the brunt of the flooding that has claimed more than two dozen lives. Federal officials have declared Missouri a disaster area, making it eligible for emergency funding. In Alexander County, Ill., Mississippi flood waters breached a 16-mile long levee in five places. Crews are sandbagging levees to beef them up against the rising waters. In Little Rock, Ark., along the Arkansas River, residents have been told the water probably won’t recede far enough for them to go home until tomorrow. Some areas along the Mississippi received three times the usual rainfall in November and December—as much as 18.5 inches.

Gun-control resolution. Back from his Hawaiian vacation, President Barack Obama says he’s energized for his final year in office. His New Year’s resolution is to enact new gun-control measures. “A few months ago, I directed my team at the White House to look into any new actions I can take to help reduce gun violence,” he said during his weekly radio address. “And on Monday, I’ll meet with my attorney general, Loretta Lynch, to discuss our options.” Obama is expected to use executive action to tighten background check requirements for gun purchases. That’s not sitting well with Republicans, including those who hope to succeed Obama in the Oval Office.

Unforgettable. Singer Natalie Cole, daughter of Nat King Cole, died Thursday in Los Angeles. She was 65. Although she was well-known for her family name and musical heritage, Cole earned accolades in her own right. But the Grammy-winner had her biggest hit with a recording of her father’s classic, “Unforgettable,” that combined her own vocals with his in a poignant duet. Unforgettable ... With Love won album of the year in 1991. Another posthumous duet with her father, “When I Fall in Love,” won a Grammy in 1996, and a follow-up album, Still Unforgettable, won best traditional pop vocal album in 2008.

WORLD Radio’s Kent Covington and Jim Henry and the Associated Press contributed to this report.