STORY SUMMARY

Watching Saudi Arabia and other wealthy Gulf states line up behind the bloody counter-revolution in Egypt, you can’t help suspect that these conservative monarchies are ready to fight to the last Egyptian against the Muslim Brotherhood – waging what amounts to a proxy war against the regional threat of Islamist extremism.

Leaders in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain have been disappointed that the United States hasn’t joined them in embracing the military government in Egypt that toppled President Mohammad Morsi.

After the U.S. invaded once more in 2003 to overthrow him, the Saudis backed Sunni groups in Iraq.

The Saudis (with strong U.S. support) encouraged Muslim insurgents, including the Afghan mujahideen groups that morphed into Al-Qaeda and the Taliban.

The Saudis back Sunni forces in Lebanon against Iran’s proxy, Hezbollah; they back Sunni forces in Iraq who are waging an increasingly violent insurgency against Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

The United States shouldn’t assume that Gulf interests and those of the U.S. coincide.

Read more: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Columnist/2013/Aug-22/228179-saudi-arabia-fights-extremism-to-the-last-egyptian.ashx#ixzz2cmXN68dU
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)