the lion will lay down with the lamb before sunni and shiite do
Posted on 08/20/2017 8:09:02 PM PDT by Lorianne
Iraq and Saudi Arabia are negotiating a new alliance that would give Riyadh a leading role in rebuilding Iraq’s war-torn towns and cities, while bolstering Baghdad’s credentials across the region.
Meetings between senior officials on both sides over the past six months have focused on shepherding Iraq away from its powerful neighbour and Saudi Arabia’s long-time rival, Iran, whose influence over Iraqi affairs has grown sharply since the 2003 ousting of Saddam Hussein.
Iraq and Saudi Arabia have long been considered opponents in the region, but a visit by the Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to Riyadh last week and a follow-up trip to the UAE further thawed relations which had already been much improved by high-profile visits between the two countries.
The arrival in the Saudi capital of Sadr – a protagonist in the sectarian war that ravaged Iraq from 2004-08 and who has enduring ties to Iran – highlights a new level of engagement which could see Riyadh play a significant role in the reconstruction of the predominantly Sunni cities of Mosul, Fallujah, Ramadi and Tikrit.
“This visit was an important step in ensuring that Iraq returns to the Arab fold and is supported in doing so by friendly partners," said the former Saudi minister of state Saad al-Jabri. “This necessitates limiting Tehran’s continued attempts to dominate Iraq and spread sectarianism. Broader engagement between Riyadh and Baghdad will lead the way for enhanced regional support for Iraq, especially from the Gulf states. This is essential after the capture of Mosul from Isis and as Iraq looks towards national reconstruction.”
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
“The Return of the Sunnis”.
Coming soon to a theater near you.
Better than Iran taking over. What about the Christians who reside in Iraq? What is their fate?
the lion will lay down with the lamb before sunni and shiite do
The McCain is Saudi money.
That’s what I’m thinking.
Good thing we went over there and put the majority Shiites in control .... costing billions and no telling how many lives.
Buncha racists...
Are you kidding me?
The Iranis allow Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, Yazidi to practice their faith openly -- there are Churchs, Synagogues, Agiaries in Iran
Saudi Arabia does NOT allow you to so much as bring a Bible or a crucifix into the country.
It is better if Iran took over.
If the USA hadn’t gotten involved in Gulf War ONE, then the Saudis would not have so much wealth, Al Qaeda would have been slaughtered by Saddam and there would still be 2 million Christians in Iraq and not 300,000
Outsiders forget that as much as Iraq is majority Shiite Muslim, it is not Persian, like Iran, and in fact Shiite Islam began in Iraq, not Iran. And though Iraq is majority Shiite Muslim it also Majority Arab.
If the Saudis can entice Shia Muslims in Iraq away from geopolitical dependence on Iran, it will be a good thing for the Saudis and maybe for Iraq.
For the west, it will not change a great deal, as the Saudis are equally as fundamentalist and Islamist in their Wahabi Sunni faith as are the fundamentalist Shiite clerics of Iraq.
Personally, as far as western interests, long term, I don’t see the Saudis or the Mullahs of Tehran as our real friends in any sense. Neither is really seeking a world with real respect for the values we respect.
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