If unchecked, Saudi terrorism will plague West: Analyst

Press TV has conducted an interview with Saeed Shahabi, political analyst in London, about Kuwait’s Interior Ministry saying the individual who carried out a recent bombing attack in a Shia mosque in the country was a Saudi national.

The following is a rough transcription of the interview.

Press TV: Here we have a Saudi national. Does it in essence surprise you? I mean Saudi Arabia and its nationals in particular have obviously been involved in so many of these types of attacks or is it wrong to draw that type of conclusion?

Shahabi: This new development that the bomber is a Saudi national who has flown to Kuwait on the day of this crime is an intriguing detail. Although it is not surprising that he is a Saudi because we have had many Saudis taking part in suicide bombings everywhere in the world. Fifteen out of the 19 suicide bombers in America 2001 were Saudis.

Now, the largest number of people joining ISIS are Saudis. More than 3,000 Saudis are among the ISIS terrorists in Iraq and in Syria. So the Saudi dimension is very intriguing. Of course from my own personal experience, I can draw the parallel between the Saudi attempt to undermine the security of the region and that of the Israelis. They are very much on the same line and the Saudis now apparently are using terrorism to counter the possible Iranian rapprochement with the West – the nuclear project of Iran is being fought by terrorism by the Saudis. This is very destabilizing, very shameful episode in the history of our region.

Press TV: There is a general understanding that when it comes and if there is evidence even pointing to Saudi Arabia, there is a general understanding that because Saudi Arabia has such influence, or should I say is such a strong ally for example of the United States, that there is really not much that can be done.

You pointed out to the terror attacks of 2001 in which there were many Saudi nationals involved and we saw how that was kind of swept under the rug because there was plenty of evidence back then pointing to Saudi nationals being involved.

Is that the general feeling on Saudi Arabia when it comes to their nationals being involved in such types of attacks as this one?   

Shahabi: Definitely there is hypocrisy on the level of the international community. Now, as for the Saudi role in the 2001 bombing of American World Trade Center, the Congress intelligence committee had completed its investigation into that episode - into the 2001 bombing - and concluded that Saudi Arabia has a role in that and the report is still with the Congress. There is a lot of pressure on President Obama to expose that report, Mr. Bush before him, and he is following in the line that this report is being suppressed for the time being but there is a lot of pressure to expose it.  

But they know, I do not think for a second that the UK, the Americans, the European Union are not aware of the Saudi dimension and the Saudi adoption of terrorism as a tool to extend its regional influence.

Now it has been waging a war on Yemen for three months. Isn’t it shameful for this world not to say a word, not to call for a ceasefire? Is it too much for a war to be put off regardless of the reasons and the causes for it? So we are living in a very hypocritical world, double standards, and this is what is causing a lot of anxiety among the Muslims and the problem is that the West must be aware and must know that terrorism cannot be confined to the Middle East, cannot be confined to the Shia worshipers in Saudi Arabia and in Kuwait and now there is a threat to bomb the Shias in Bahrain next week they said.

So the West cannot be sheltered from this. This will eventually reach the borders of the West and unless they become brave enough to take action against Saudi Arabia - I say it is specifically against the Saudis not against anyone else - unless they are prepared to take such a stand, their citizens will suffer from this terrorism.

AHK/HMV

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