(Brookings Institution) Bruce Riedel - The Saudis have initiated a major campaign to undermine Iran's ally Hizbullah, which they believe is vulnerable today. The Saudis branded Hizbullah a terrorist organization earlier this year and then persuaded their Gulf Cooperation Council allies to do the same on March 2. The Arab League formally agreed to label Hizbullah a terrorist group at a foreign ministerial meeting in Cairo later in the month. The current Saudi campaign dates to last summer when Crown Prince Nayef's spies captured the mastermind of the Khobar Towers attack, Ahmed Ibrahim al-Mughassil. The June 25, 1996, attack on an American military barracks in Saudi Arabia killed 19 U.S. Air Force personnel and 372 were wounded. The FBI identified the bomb maker in the Khobar attack as a member of Lebanese Hizbullah. It is likely that Mughassil gave the Saudis considerably more details on Hizbullah's role in the operation after his detention. The writer was a senior advisor on South Asia and the Middle East to the last four U.S. presidents.
2016-04-01 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive