The
status of Saudi Arabia vis-à-vis the issue of Islamic terror is
unique and particularly complex, because on the one hand Saudi Arabia
is an ally of the United States, and it opposes and combats Islamic
terror posing a threat to its regime, while on the other hand it
supports and aids radical Islamic organizations in their activities in
distant arenas.
The
roots of the “Islamic dilemma” of the Saudi regime are to be found in
the historical alliance between Muhammad Ibn Saud, founder of the
Saudi dynasty, and Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahab. The Saudi dynasty won
the religious legitimacy and in exchange promised to cooperate with
the Wahabian dynasty in government and offered legitimacy to the
religious school of thought that it represents.
Saudi Arabia is involved in the export of radicalism and Islamic
terror on several levels:
-
Saudi Arabia is the stronghold and nucleus of influence for the
Wahabian movements that act to export the radical Islamic ideas from
the Wahabian school of thought to Islamic focal points throughout
the Muslim world (Chechnya, the Balkan, Afghanistan, the African
continent, and more).
-
Saudi Arabia acts to disseminate radical Islam via charities and
relief organizations that serve radical Islamic organizations and
entities with the full knowledge of the authorities.
-
Saudi Arabia openly aids the Palestinian Islamic terror
organizations, mainly the Hamas, in their struggle against Israel.
Fifteen of the suicide attack perpetrators on September 11, 2001 were
Saudi citizens.
The
Saudi monarchy faces threats posed by the opposition and motivated by
a combination of social, economic, ideological and religious causes.
Over the years, the extravagant and wasteful lifestyle of the Saudi
monarchy, the inequality in the distribution of the country’s
resources and riches, and the “non-Islamic” behavior of the country’s
leadership have generated wide cadres of opposition elements within
Islamic circles that aspire to topple the regime and replace it with a
“real” religious Islamic state in Saudi Arabia.
External factors also pose a threat to the regime, for instance Iran’s
subversion and its attempt to export the Khomeinist revolution to
Saudi Arabia, and Sadam Hussein’s activity against the Saudi regime.
The
threats that the Saudi regime faces on the one hand, and its power
bases which rely on Western support as well as the power brokers close
to the regime on the other hand, force the regime to adopt a cautious
and complicated policy regarding the manner of handling radical Islam
and terror.
In
the course of the “Defense Shield” campaign, confiscated Saudi and
Palestinian documents were found that dealt with the systematic and
ongoing transfer of large amounts of money to the territories by Saudi
institutions and organizations for the purpose of “supporting the
intifada”.
The
Saudi regime takes all of the necessary actions vis-à-vis
entities that constitute a threat to the regime’s stability, including
the execution of terrorists. Nevertheless, at the same time it enables
radical entities from Saudi Arabia to act outside of its boundaries
almost without disruption, thus creating a “modus vivendi” with
these elements.
