The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is having a tough time these days with war, or the threat of war, on several fronts at the same time: against the Houthis in Yemen, against the Assad regime in Syria, against Iran in Iraq, and now, a fourth front is opening up against the Islamic State which claimed responsibility for the attack on a Shiite mosque in the eastern region over the weekend.
Most of these conflicts have erupted or escalated since the new King Salman bin Abdul Aziz came to power five months ago. The new King and two of the other most powerful men in the regime: the other two are Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, Crown Prince and head of the Supreme Council, and Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Minister of Defense and President of the Economic Council.
These younger men are transforming the kingdom into a state characterized by firmness and decisiveness; characteristics which are reflected in the two other key state institutions – the religious establishment and the media.
At the heart of this new dynamism lies a deeply entrenched hostility towards Saudi Arabia’s main regional rival, Iran.
It is regrettable that this anti-Shiite trend has begun to entirely poison the religions establishment and the pens of Saudi writers. Social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook are also full of Saudi vitriol so much so that one could say the land of the two holy places has become an incubator of sectarian incitement and hatred.
We do not deny that Iran produces its own share of sectarian incitement, but as the English are so fond of saying, ‘two wrongs do not make a right’.
The Saudi media faced a dilemma when the Islamic State targeted a Shiia mosque inside the Kingdom. Now the victims were described as martyrs… yet living Shia are labelled ‘rejectionists’ and ‘heretics’.
I recently read an article by an important Saudi writer who compared the current Saudi war in Yemen to the actions against militants in the past by the Baathist regimes of Assad and Saddam Hussein. He opined that the war in Yemen must continue until victory and that Riyadh must be resolute and patient in order to achieve this victory. It should reject any calls for ceasefire even for humanitarian considerations, and should ignore any attempts at diplomacy. He thought that a ceasefire would benefit the rebels as they would regroup and rearm. It seems that this writer – who probably reflects the predominant mood in the regime – wants the continued air strikes on Yemen for years, as well as with air, sea and land blockade, ie, turn Yemen into another Gaza Strip. You would think this was a speech by General Montgomery, not a Saudi writer supposed to possess wisdom, prudence and foresight. How preferable it would have been if he had offered, instead, some logical options to exit this crisis, which is about to complete the second month without achieving any of its objectives.
King Salman bin Abdul Aziz, and as is evident in the rapid transition from deliberation to confrontation, wants to place the Kingdom in the Middle East’s driving seat. The question that arises is, is this an appropriate role for the custodians of the Islamic holy places? And then , is the Kingdom ready and experienced enough for such a dynamic leading role?
The whole region is actually disintegrating under the burden of sectarianism, completing the task first put in motion by Sykes-Picot. This unprecedented time of regional crisis surely requires in-depth thinking and constructive dialogue?
Source: Rai al-Yaum
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