Saudi Arabia is at risk of becoming a major destabilizing influence in the Arab world, German intelligence has warned. Internal power struggles and the desire to emerge as the leading Arab power threaten to make the key Western ally a source of instability, according to the BND intelligence service. “The current cautious diplomatic stance of senior members of the Saudi … Read more
Elements of the charm offensive include the launch of a pro-Saudi Arabia media portal operated by high-profile Republican campaign consultants; a special English-language website devoted to putting a positive spin on the latest developments in the Yemen war; glitzy dinners with American political and business elites; and a non-stop push to sway reporters and policymakers. … Read more
Just yesterday, I published an article highlighting the latest deranged idea floated by Saudi Arabia’s monarchs to sue Twitter users comparing the barbaric kingdom to ISIS. Today, I present to you a powerful graphic courtesy of Middle East Eye, which demonstrates precisely why the Saudis are so sensitive about the topic. Namely, because the accusations are true. … Read more
Saudi Arabia never, ever disappoints when it comes to barbarism and backwardness. The latest example is a supposed threat to sue a Twitter user for making the obvious and accurate comparison of the regime to ISIS, something I myself have done on countless occasions. The Washington Post reports: Authorities in Saudi Arabia have long been annoyed … Read more
A Palestinian poet and leading member of Saudi Arabia’s nascent contemporary art scene has been sentenced to death for renouncing Islam. Fayadh, 35, a key member of the British-Saudi art organisation Edge of Arabia, was originally sentenced to four years in prison and 800 lashes by the general court in Abha, a city in the south-west … Read more
Mass surveillance at home and endless military projection abroad are the twin sides of the same coin of national security, which must simply be maximized as much as possible. Conspicuously missing from President Hollande’s decisive declaration of war however, was any mention of the biggest elephant in the room: state-sponsorship. A senior Western official familiar with a … Read more
Saudi Arabia, the recently crowned head of a UN human rights panel and close U.S. government ally, has now bombed two wedding parties in Yemen in just over a week. Yes, you read that right. The New York Times reports: SANA, Yemen — Airstrikes by a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia hit a house south of … Read more
The following would be funny, if it weren’t so incredibly sad. The United Nations’ spiral into clownish insignificance continues unabated. From the New York Times: GENEVA — In a U-turn at the United Nations Human Rights Council, Western governments dropped plans Wednesday for an international inquiry into human rights violations by all parties in the … Read more
Nothing screams out human rights like bombing women and children at a wedding party. Saudi Arabia sure is on a roll. Having just been rewarded with the head position on a UN’s human rights panel for its unmatched capacity for barbarism and civil rights abuse, the Saudis can now add another massacre to its long list of … Read more
Just last evening, I posted an article about how the UN disgracefully named Saudi Arabia to head its human rights panel. So how do the Saudis plan on celebrating this achievement? By executing a teenager via crucifixion, naturally. I covered this story back in May in the piece, Not ISIS – Saudi Arabia Prepares to Execute and … Read more