Saudi Arabia's Sunni-ruled but Shiite-majority ally Bahrain followed Riyadh's suit on Tuesday and cut all air links with Iran across the Gulf, official media reported.

The decision comes a day after Manama broke off diplomatic relations with Tehran amid an escalating crisis between Saudi Arabia and the Islamic republic over the execution of a Shiite cleric.

The official BNA news agency said on its Twitter account that the kingdom's civil aviation authority had "decided to stop flights to and from Iran".