The Saudi Taliban
The revelations coming out of the high court vis-a-vis Saudi Prince Bandar are truly astonishing. Bandar told the government that unless the Serious Fraud Office's investigation into illegal payments to Bandar was halted, the Saudi's would withhold intelligence on terrorists. The Guardian reports that: "Investigators said they were given to understand their would be "another 7/7" and the "loss of British lives on British streets" if they carried on delving into the payments...". (Remarks which suggest that the Saudi's may know more, and be more complicit, with these terrorists than one might suspect). The response of Blair? To roll over and say: OK, Bandar, anything you say. The context, remember, is that almost all the 9/11 highjackers were Saudi's; Osama Bin Laden is Saudi; Saudi is promoting its extreme brand of Islam around the world; and the Saudi's are beheading, amputating, and stoning like nobody's business (and flogging young women for the terrible crime of - er, being raped). Bandar's action was clearly that of a hostile power and should have been treated as such. How much sense does it make to declare a "war of terror" in which the terrorists are jihadists, and then have as an ally a country which harbours and nurtures the self-same jihadists? To wage war against the Taliban in Afghanistan, and turn a blind eye to the Taliban in Saudi Arabia? Not so long ago these people wre feted at Buckingham Palace, and Kim Howells bleated about having "shared values" with the Saudis? What shared values? Shared values with people who say they would not alert us to an attempt to murder people on our streets? Isn't it astonishing that on the part of Blair and his government there seems to have been no sense of outrage that Bandar should dare to speak to the government in this fashion?
posted by Politaholic at 8:42 am
2 Comments:
You've made a common mistake. The goals of the Taliban are not necessarily in synch with those of the terrorists that committed mass murder in London a couple of years ago.
Also, the Saudis are, indeed, beheading with a frenzy, it would seem, but the cutting off of hands is extremely rare these days, and I've never heard of a stoning here in modern times. The most recent stoning sentence to gain attention is in Iran.
If you want to stress the barbarianism in Saudi Arabia, be accurate with your remarks. There's really no need for hyperbole. Things are bad enough that exaggeration is wholly unnecessary.
As you say, it is bad enough. They only cut off limbs occasionally? Jesus, I'd no idea they had made such giants strides towards becoming civilised. On the main point, I think I am right, and by the sounds of it you agree with me. But OK, I accept your slap on the wrist.
Post a Comment
<< Home