The New York Post’s Peter Brooks explains that our friends the Saudis are competing with Iran to control terrorist organizations in the Middle East yet there is an up side:
* In Lebanon, Saudi Arabia backs the government of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora. Iran backs Shia Hezbollah, which has sought to topple the democratically elected government since the end of the war with Israel last summer.
* In the Palestinian territories, both Iran and Saudi Arabia are courting Hamas. While Tehran has long supported Hamas against Israel, Riyadh cut in on Hamas’ dance card in February by brokering a political agreement between Hamas and Fatah at Mecca.
* The Saudis recently stepped in to help ink a peace deal between Sudan and neighboring Chad. They won points for preserving peace within Sunni Islam – but also likely hoped to get Khartoum to stop Iran’s funding of the conversion of young Sunni Sudanese to Shiism.
But Iraq is the major flashpoint. The Iranian regime seeks two basic things there: 1) An ignominious defeat for America, leading to a U.S. withdrawal – from the region, if possible; and 2) The establishment of a Shia-dominated, pro-Iran Iraqi government.
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The Saudis, by contrast, largely back their fellow Sunnis in Iraq – with the important exception of al Qaeda and the insurgents. Above all else, they want to prevent Iraq from falling under Tehran’s sway. One big fear is that sectarian strife could flow over Iraq’s borders into Saudi Arabia – stirring up trouble with Saudi Arabia’s Shia minority.Riyadh has been none too pleased with U.S. progress in Iraq; recently, it’s started taking matters quietly into its own hands. Covert Saudi support has been flowing to places like Anbar, where Sunni tribal forces are being “re-empowered.”
Happily, though, that support is bolstering the overall U.S. effort – for the Sunnis of Anbar have been striking back at the strong (and overwhelmingly foreign) al Qaeda presence in the province, rather than fighting Iraqi Shiites.