After years of tension, Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shia Iran re-established diplomatic relations in March 2023, in an attempt to patch things up. But tensions have remained high, especially over Yemen, where Iran continues to back the Shi’a Houthis and Saudi Arabia supports the mostly-Sunni national government. Another bone of contention is Lebanon, where the Saudis oppose the takeover of the country by the Shia Hezbollah. Riyadh remembers Hezbollah’s murder in 2005 of former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri, who had longstanding ties to the Saudi royal family, made his billions as a contractor in the Kingdom, was granted Saudi citizenship, and even served as an advisor to Prince Bandar. Hariri was at the time of his death the undisputed leader of the Lebanese Sunnis, and thus became a target for the Iran-backed Shias of Hezbollah. Now Hezbollah is the most powerful force in Lebanon, and the Sunnis, both in Lebanon and in Saudi Arabia, are furious at this state of affairs.
Saudi Arabia has made known that it was part of the coalition that helped Israel to shoot down the drones, cruise and ballistic missiles that Iran launched against it during the recent attack. More on this Saudi admission can be found here: “Saudi Arabia says it helped defend Israel against Iran — report,” Jerusalem Post, April 15, 2024:
Saudi Arabia acknowledged that it had helped the newly forged regional military coalition — Israel, the United States, Jordan, the United Kingdom, and France — repel an Iranian attack against the Jewish state early Sunday morning, in an unusual post on its royal family’s website.
The Saudis might have stayed above the fray. But they regard Iran as a menace to them, and to all the Gulf Sunni states. They recognize that Iran is building a “Shi’a crescent” (a term first coined by King Abdullah of Jordan) around the Middle East, consisting of its proxies and allies: the Houthis in Yemen, the Kata’Ib Hezbollah in Iraq, the Alawite-led army in Syria, and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Iran’s maneuverings makes the Saudis anxious. They have no love for Shi’ites, whom they regard as less than orthodox Muslims, and they recognize that Iran’s aggression in the region has aims far beyond destruction of the Jewish state. Sunni Arabs are also in Tehran’s sights.
It [the story on the royal family’s website] referenced a story on KAN News about the Saudi involvement in the military defensive operation in which 99% of the Iranian drones and missiles were destroyed before hitting their targets.
The Saudi royal family dropped the news about the country’s participation in the defensive operation against Iran not directly, but by quoting the Israeli news agency KAN, which made that claim. Thus the Saudis can preserve deniability should they feel the need: “that story didn’t come from us, but from an Israeli source. You can believe it if you like.”
Many of the drones and missiles had to travel over Jordanian and Saudi airspace to reach Israel.
Nearly all of Iran’s drones and missiles had to travel through Saudi or Jordanian airspace. The Saudis had announced, just before Iran’s attack, that their airspace was “closed” to all foreign traffic, so they could argue that in shooting down Iran’s drones and missile they were merely enforcing a neutral rule that applied to everyone alike. But that closure of its airspace affected only Iran,that was now using that airspace to send drones and missiles toward Israel. Any country, such as the U.S., that shot down drones or missiles in Saudi air space would not be invading that space, in the Saudi view, but protecting it from those violating the Saudi “closure.”
Jordan has been public about its involvement, while the closest Saudi Arabia has come to acknowledging it was the story it posted on its website summarizing what a source from the Saudi royal family had told KAN.
Jordan’s King Abdullah has for many years been warning about Iran’s attempt to create a “Shi’a crescent” in the Middle East, so it is no surprise that Jordan was quick to join the coalition of states — the U.S., U.K., France, and Israel — shooting down Iran’s drones and missiles. And what’s more, Jordan also made no bones about its participation; it was proud of its performance in foiling Iran even if, in the process, it was also helping Israel.
The individual subtly acknowledges Saudi Arabia’s supposed involvement in thwarting Iranian attack drones bound for Israel the previous evening, citing that Saudi Arabian airspace automatically intercepts “any suspicious entity,” the report on the royal family’s website stated.
The same figure takes a swing at Iran, accusing them of instigating a conflict in Gaza. This, they suggest, is a deliberate attempt to unravel the progress established towards normalizing relations with Israel, as per KAN’s report,” it added….
This “same figure” — it must be someone very close to the Crown Prince, if not the Crown Prince himself — blames Iran for the war in Gaza. Without Iran’s supply of weapons and money, Hamas would not have felt powerful enough to take on Israel with that 3,000-man swarm that entered the Jewish state on October 7 to rape, torture, mutilate, and murder. Iran, the informant implies, must have given Hamas the go-ahead to invade Israel. The Saudis have made their position crystal-clear: Iran, as Hamas’ backer, is responsible for the Gaza war.
There is no going back now for Saudi Arabia; it cannot revive ties with Iran. Already frayed, those ties have now snapped. And Riyadh clearly doesn’t want to let Iran continue its aggression in the region, not even if its current enmity is mostly directed at Israel. By joining the coalition of the Five — the U.S., U.K., France, Israel, and Jordan — in their spectacularly successful effort to prevent Iranian drones and missiles from hitting Israel, Saudi Arabia will now be treated by Iran as a permanent enemy, not quite on the level of the Great Satan, America, or the Little Satan, Israel, but certainly placed on the rung just below those two.
The Sunni Arabs have had it with Iran’s aggressive designs around the region. Jordan and Saudi Arabia have decided that even if they end up helping Israel, as the unintended beneficiary of their own war with Iran, it’s permissible, for nothing now is more important than halting the mad-dog mullahs in Iran, with their dreams of a Shi’a-led Middle East.
Mick says
You are the experts, but I see Iran’s alliances as defensive; building a shield against future assaults by an alliance of Sunni Islam/ the West.
The assault in 1980 and its aftermath killed 500k? Iranians and 500k? Iraqi Shia
My other delusion is that Sunni (Wahhabi) Islam is a far greater threat to Western culture. Compare the Sunni and Shia maps..
Tony Rice says
Saudi Arabia may not be too friendly towards the West and Israel but at least they think rationally and are prepared to act accordingly , as per the latest example. They want to sign a ” Friendship Act ” with Israel as the Saudis realise WHO is their enemy , and is not Israel. Time will come when Saudi Arabia and Jordan will look to Israel for protection
And I read that the original Saudi Royal family were Jewish, a long time ago.