[Billthedrill]

Interesting. The target isn't obviously American or even Western. This may - MAY - represent the stirrings of a fundamentalist hand in the succession within the monarchy. The Wahhabis were, in fact, largely responsible for the accession to the throne of the family of Saud; they've been the power behind the throne ever since. If this is such a manifestation (and it's only a suggestion on my part) then things may soon get very ugly indeed in Riyadh. There are already signs that the intelligence services are conducting a nasty little internecine war even involving members of the royal family. Were real fundamentalists to topple the existing government the U.S. intervention in Iraq will look like a minor matter. In fact, it has been suggested that freeing Iraq from Saddam was, in part, a measure to guard against the potential complications of just such an eventuality.

[11B3]

As usual, my friend, you're right on the money there.

[bonesmccoy]

what is the likelihood of replacing the Ssudi monarchy with a democratically elected, representative gov't?