Center for Democracy and Human Rights in Saudi Arabia, CDHR, Washington DC

Nov. 14, 2016

Imploring Israelis, Fallout of Yemen War, Wahhabism, Congress Rebellions

CDHR’s Analysis and Commentaries

Saudis implore Israelis for help

CDHR Analysis: The Saudi royals are petitioning the Israelis to save them. As the president of the Saudi American Public Relation Affairs Committee, Salman al-Ansari, says in this Hill blog post, the Saudis are imploring Israel to resuscitate their collapsing economy and defend them against their Iranian Muslim brethren.

This should not have come as a surprise, given the Saudi ruling family’s obsession with its security and mistrust of Arab and Muslim regimes, especially the Persians, with whom they share strategic borders and reciprocal religious hatred.

Having risen to and maintained their power by ruthless force, the Saudi rulers have mastered the art of ensuring their survival by all the means they possess, can invent or can buy. Read more: www.cdhr.info

Yemen: From the Shadows of Obscurity to Potential Regional and Global Quagmire

CDHR Commentary: The ongoing bloody war in Yemen is dangerously spreading and is increasingly becoming more than a civil war in that impoverished country. The Saudi-led coalition’s invasion and indiscriminate bombardments of Yemeni cities, grocery stores, humanitarian hospitals and funeral homes are pushing the Zaidi Yemenis (Houthis) and their supporters into unleashing missile attacks not only against Saudi bordering regions, but deep into Muslims’ holiest city, Mecca. It’s likely that other Gulf states will be targeted because of their participation in the Saudi-led coalition. Read more: www.cdhr.info

The US Congress is Breaking the Deafening Silence

CDHR Commentary: Never in the 8 decade history of US-Saudi relations have the Saudi rulers been more challenged by the US Congress than they have been between May and September 2016. Both Houses of Congress (100 senators and 435 representatives) unanimously passed a bill to allow American families of the victims of the infamous 9/11 terrorist attacks by mostly Saudi nationals to sue the Saudi regime for its implicit support for some of the attackers. Not only did Congress pass the sweeping legislation but overrode President Obama’s veto of the bill. Read more: www.cdhr.info

Western Experts Overlook the Reasons for Iran’s Growing Influence

CDHR Commentary: Western experts tend to overlook the root causes of Iran’s increasing influence in Arab countries, especially since the establishment of the theocratic Islamic Republic in 1979.  The Iranian theocracy capitalizes on the plight of Arab Shi’a minorities who have been oppressed and marginalized for centuries by their ruling Sunni regimes and fellow citizen. As abundantly documented, Shi’a Muslims are considered blasphemous by their Sunni rulers and compatriots; consequently, they are considered unworthy of dignity, equality, trust and access to opportunities. Based on this deeply entrenched religious intolerance and hatred, the Arab Shia (whether minorities as in most Arab countries or majorities as in Bahrain and Iraq), are politically, religiously and economically discriminated against to the point of being untouchable s and strangers in their own homelands. Read more: www.cdhr.info

‘Wahhabism’ “has become a Boogeyman”-- Only in the West?

CDHR Commentary: Mr. Mohammed Alyahya, a Saudi advocate, is only half correct by stating that, “The word ‘Wahhabism’ has become a boogeyman in the West, deemed responsible for the radicalization of Muslims around the world. And since Wahhabism is a strain of Islam that has its origins {established} in the Arabian Peninsula and is the dominant {state imposed} religious doctrine of Saudi Arabia, that country is often viewed as the prime culprit in the propagation of violent extremism."

Prince Mohammed: Lavishing $500 Million on a Yacht While Squeezing Citizens

CDHR Commentary: According to this  effusive account, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi “economic reformer,” spotted a Russian vodka maker’s luxurious yacht while vacationing in southern France and immediately purchased it for $500 million. The neophyte prince, who just happens to be the “favorite” son of Saudi King Salman, has been charged with saving the Saudi kingdom’s faltering economy. At the tender age of 28, he was designated Defense Minister, Deputy Crown Prince, overseer of the Saudis’ collapsing economy and the Chief of the Royal Court. Other than being educated in outmoded Saudi schools and being the son of the most conservative (Islamist) member of the ruling family, Mohammed bin Salman had no previous official title or experience in any of the powerful positions with which he is entrusted. Read more: www.cdhr.info

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