#arabie_séoudite

Macron « assume » la livraison d’armes à l’Arabie saoudite, malgré la guerre au Yémen
▻https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2019/05/09/guerre-au-yemen-une-ong-fait-un-recours-en-urgence-contre-le-depart-de-franc

« L’Etat français ne peut ignorer que ces armes peuvent servir à commettre des crimes de guerre au Yémen, où plus de 400 000 civils sont potentiellement sous le feu », a déclaré à l’Agence France-Presse (AFP) l’avocat de l’ACAT, Joseph Breham. Plusieurs autres organisations — comme Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International ou l’Observatoire des armements — sont également vent debout contre ces ventes. Jeudi, une centaine de personnes étaient rassemblées au port du Havre, à l’appel de la Ligue des droits de l’homme et du Mouvement de la paix, pour dénoncer ces livraisons qui contribuent, selon eux, au « carnage en cours au Yémen ». « Interdire les ventes d’armes aux pays en guerre » ou « Au Yémen, un enfant est tué toutes les 5 minutes », pouvait-on lire sur leurs pancartes.

Si le président français n’a pas précisé les armes qui devaient être chargées au Havre, le site d’investigation Disclose a avancé que le navire devait prendre livraison de « huit canons de type Caesar » que l’Arabie saoudite pourrait utiliser dans la guerre qu’elle livre au Yémen aux rebelles houthistes, minorité chiite soutenue par l’Iran, grand rival de Riyad. Paris a invariablement affirmé que ces armements ne sont utilisés que de manière défensive et pas sur la ligne de front.

Mais, selon une note de la direction du renseignement militaire (DRM), révélée par Disclose mi-avril, 48 canons Caesar produits par l’industriel français Nexter « appuient les troupes loyalistes, épaulées par les forces armées saoudiennes, dans leur progression en territoire yéménite ». Une carte de la DRM estime que « 436 370 personnes » sont « potentiellement concernées par de possibles frappes d’artillerie », dont celles des canons français. « Il ne suffit pas de dire “j’ai des garanties”, il faut nous les montrer. De même, nous aimerions qu’on nous explique clairement, nettement, comment l’Arabie saoudite lutte contre le terrorisme au Yémen », a réagi Aymeric Elluin, d’Amnesty International France.

UK training Saudi forces used to crush Arab spring | World news | The Observer
►http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/28/uk-training-saudi-troops

Britain is training Saudi Arabia’s national guard – the elite security force deployed during the recent protests in Bahrain – in public order enforcement measures and the use of sniper rifles. The revelation has outraged human rights groups, which point out that the Foreign Office recognises that the kingdom’s human rights record is “a major concern”.

In response to questions made under the Freedom of Information Act, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed that British personnel regularly run courses for the national guard in “weapons, fieldcraft and general military skills training, as well as incident handling, bomb disposal, search, public order and sniper training”. The courses are organised through the British Military Mission to the Saudi Arabian National Guard, an obscure unit that consists of 11 British army personnel under the command of a brigadier.

#grande-bretagne #bahreïn #arabie_séoudite

Arrestation d’un cheikh chiite anti-Hezbollah, dirigeant un groupuscule anti-israélien au Liban Sud, financé par l’Arabies séoudite et... à la solde d’Israël.

Si tu ne suis que les médias français, il y a de fortes chances que tu sois passé à côté de cette information (pourtant énorme), qui n’a été publiée ici que dans le flux de dépêches d’agence d’Europe 1 :
►http://www.europe1.fr/International/Un-libanais-accuse-d-espionnage-pour-Israel-555879

Les services de renseignement militaires libanais ont arrêté un cheikh chiite du Sud-Liban soupçonné d’espionnage pour le compte d’Israël, a-t-on appris mardi de source proche de la sécurité. Le religieux, qui était notoiremement critique envers les combattants du Hezbollah et ses deux parrains régionaux, la Syrie et l’Iran, a été arrêté lundi dans le port de Tyr, a-t-on précisé de même source. Il dirige une organisation baptisée Résistance arabo-islamique, qui dispose, selon lui, d’un millier et demi de combattants, et qui avait revendiqué il y a deux ans une attaque à la roquette contre Israël.

Oui, tu as bien lu :
– le cheikh chiite libanais connu pour être très critique envers le Hezbollah est... un espion à la solde des israéliens ;
– l’(assez obscure) organisation subtilement baptisée « Résistance arabo-islamique » au Sud Liban est, tiens tiens tiens, un réseau d’espionnage à la solde des israéliens ;
– le groupuscule « qui avait revendiqué [...] une attaque à la roquette contre Israël » est... à la solde des israéliens.

D’autres détails dans la dépêche reprise par iLoubnan :

►http://www.iloubnan.info/politique/actualite/id/62074/titre/Arrestation-au-Liban-d'un-religieux-chiite-soupçonné-d'espionnage-pour-Is

Les services de renseignement militaires libanais ont arrêté un dignitaire religieux chiite, connu pour son opposition au Hezbollah, le soupçonnant d’espionnage au profit d’Israël, a annoncé mardi l’Agence de presse nationale.

« Des officiers militaires du renseignement ont arrêté samedi le chef du conseil islamique arabe, Mohammed Ali al-Husseini, qui est suspecté de conspiration avec l’ennemi israélien », a indiqué l’agence. M. Husseini, connu pour sa farouche opposition au puissant mouvement chiite armé Hezbollah, soutenu par l’Iran, a été arrêté durant un raid de l’armée à son domicile, dans la ville de Tyr (sud), selon la même source.

Le Daily Star (désormais propriété de Hariri) minimise l’importance de l’organisation du gugusse (on passe de 1500 membres à... 75), mais apporte d’autres précisions :
►http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Politics/2011/May-25/Sheikh-suspected-of-spying-for-Israel-arrested-near-Tyre.ashx#axzz1NdH

The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Lebanese intelligence personnel arrested Sheikh Mohammad Ali Husseini, leader of the obscure Arab-Islamic Resistance group, late Saturday in his apartment in the Riz complex just east of the southern port city of Tyre and took him to the Defense Ministry in Yarze, east Beirut, for questioning.

The source said information gathered about Husseini over the past 10 days led to his arrest.

The Lebanese intelligence unit also confiscated computer sets, communication equipment and documents from Husseini’s home.

Et si l’info n’était pas déjà assez énorme :

Reporters based in south Lebanon said Husseini, who is critical of both Hezbollah and the Amal Movement of Speaker Nabih Berri, has been funded by Saudi Arabia since 2008.

[...]

Al-Akhbar newspaper Tuesday said Husseini met Saudi King Abdullah in 2008.

Résumé : Au Liban Sud, l’armée libanaise a arrêté un cheikh chiite anti-Hezbollah à la solde d’Israël, dirigeant un groupuscule baptisé « Résistance arabo-islamique » financé par l’Arabie séoudite.

L’information selon laquelle cette organisation « avait revendiqué [...] une attaque à la roquette contre Israël » implique qu’Israël paie des gens au Liban Sud pour tirer des roquettes contre son propre territoire.

Face à ces informations, ami journaliste, tu as deux possibilités :
– tu la reprends, parce que c’est proprement énorme et qu’il est difficile de comprendre quoi que ce soit à la situation libanaise en ignorant ce genre de chose,
– ou tu la caches sous le tapis, et tu penses à mettre dans ton prochain papier une remarque désobligeante sur cette affreuse propension arabe pour les théories du complot.

#israël #liban #espionnage #arabie_séoudite

Saudi Arabia Defies Mideast Upheaval - Glen Carey - Bloomberg
►http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-17/saudi-arabia-defies-mideast-upheaval.html

Saudi Arabia is leading a counter-revolution against the sweeping political changes in the Middle East by using money, force and religion.

As popular movements for democracy toppled leaders in Egypt and Tunisia and began threatening neighboring Bahrain and Yemen, Saudi Arabia’s Al Saud royal family strengthened control over the Arab world’s biggest economy. Once restrictive of the Muslim clerics, King Abdullah offered money and new censorship powers for their loyalty as he doled out 500 billion riyals ($130 billion) nationally in housing grants and other sweeteners.

The Al Saud have “positioned themselves as the guardians of the status quo,” Christopher Davidson, author of “Power and Politics in the Persian Gulf Monarchies,” said in response to e-mailed questions. “We are seeing a resistance to genuine reform by using a mixture of carrots and sticks.”

Bloomberg publie (étonnamment ?) un très intéressant article de Glen Carey sur la contre-révolution menée par l’Arabie séoudite. À noter, au milieu de la répression pure et simple :

– la participation des entreprises américaines, des banques et des agences de notation :

In Riyadh yesterday, Finance Minister Ibrahim al-Assaf told 1,200 conference delegates, including officials from JPMorgan Chase & Co., Moody’s Investors Service and BNP Paribas SA, that the Saudi economy was on track for stronger growth.

– l’achat des religieux wahabites (avec des sommes totalement délirantes) :

Political loyalties have their costs. Of the expenditure announced by Abdullah in February and March, $67 billion went to funds for housing, religious groups and the military, according to a royal decree issued by the king.

[...]

Abdullah issued a royal decree banning media services from publishing anything that “violates” Islamic law, “harms the reputation” of clerics, and threatens internal security, the official Saudi Press Agency in Riyadh said on April 29.

Un article qui ne pousse pas le bouchon, d’où son intérêt : des faits simples et clairs, plutôt incontestables. Qui montre que l’intérêt du big bizness international (ou « occidental ») passe par la répression de la démocratie, l’agitation sectaire et par le fait de filer des dizaines de milliards aux pires fondamentalistes religieux de la planète.

#arabie_séoudite

Military-Salafi relations in Egypt raise questions | Al-Masry Al-Youm : Today’s News from Egypt
►http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/node/431100

In Egypt, Salafism is more a school of thought, rather than an organization with a hierarchy.

The roots of the school can be found in Saudi Wahhabism, which first emerged in the 18th century in the Arabian Peninsula. Since the 1970s, Saudi Arabia has been spreading such fundamentalist ideas in Egypt by exporting radical books and financing certain Salafi activities. Egyptians working in the Gulf and then returning to Egypt have also helped to spread such views.

Under Mubarak, Salafis generally kept a low profile and remained out of politics, although they were used by the former regime to counter the Muslim Brotherhood.

During the 25 January revolution, Salafi scholars denounced protests as un-Islamic and warned Muslim youths against engaging in the uprising, but the hard-line Muslims became visible once Mubarak and his security apparatus fell. They were emboldened to stage more protests along sectarian lines. Some went further, announcing the formation of political parties to compete in the parliamentary elections slated for September.

Some observers allege that the sudden emergence of Salafis is orchestrated by Saudi Arabia, which seeks to abort the Egyptian revolution for fear that the same revolutionary model would be reproduced on its soil.

À nouveau, les journalistes égyptiens semblent les seuls au monde à oser évoquer les mains sales de l’Arabie séoudite.

#égypte #arabie_séoudite

Copts protest sectarian violence - Politics - Egypt - Ahram Online
►http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/11698/Egypt/Politics-/Copts-protest-sectarian-violence.aspx

Some protesters think that Saudi Arabia is supporting the Salafis in Egypt. “We were never like this, all this is planned by the Saudis,” Ashraf Tarek, one of the protesters, told Ahram Online.

L’Égypte semble être le seul pays au monde où les journalistes se permettent de dénoncer les magouilles de l’Arabie séoudite.

#égypte #arabie_séoudite

Silence sur Bahreïn | Alain Gresh (Les blogs du Diplo)
►http://blog.mondediplo.net/2011-04-13-Silence-sur-Bahrein

Saudi Prince al-Waleed’s land ’frozen’ | Al-Masry Al-Youm : Today’s News from Egypt
►http://www.almasryalyoum.com/en/node/394606

Egypt’s public prosecutors’ office said on Sunday it had ’frozen’ land in southern Egypt controlled by Saudi billionaire Prince al-Waleed bin Talal because the original sale of the land violated the law.

Yeah !

The spokesman said Al-Waleed’s contract violated Egyptian law because the area KADCO bought was twice the legal limit and because it improperly exempted al-Waleed’s company from all taxes and fees.

C’est énorme ! Les rachats de terre par les séoudiens sont un fait marquant dans le monde arabe : impact sur le développement, impact sur l’agriculture, impact sur la politique, etc.

#égypte #arabie_séoudite

Haia officers get training to combat black magic - Arab News
►http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article344101.ece

JEDDAH: A total of 30 officials of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (Haia) have been trained on how to deal with cases of black magic.

#Arabie_séoudite #magie_noire

Saudi protest ends with arrests - Al Jazeera English
►http://english.aljazeera.net//news/middleeast/2011/03/2011320112126999266.html

Several protesters were arrested in Saudi Arabia on Sunday at a demonstration demanding the release of thousands of prisoners, held captive for years without trial.

They were among dozens of men and women who tried to push their way into Riyadh’s interior ministry building, which was fortified with up to 2,000 special forces and 200 police vehicles, according to the Associated Press news agency.

“We have seen at least three or four police vehicles taking people away,” said an activist there who declined to be named.

“Security forces have arrested around 15 people. They tried to go into the ministry to go and ask for the freedom of their loved ones.”

#arabie_séoudite

C’est le #Liban, pays qui n’a plus de gouvernement, qui a proposé le projet de résolution sur la #Libye, pour le compte de la Ligue arabe. C’est donc une résolution sponsorisée par l’#Arabie_séoudite, pays qui vient d’envahir Bahreïn pour réprimer sa population civile, qui proclame une intervention militaire contre la Libye. Cohérent.

Saudi Arab played key role in the release of Raymond Davis: PML (N) Leader
►http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/8492957-saudi-arab-played-key-role-in-the-release-of-raymond-davis-pml-n-

A prominet leader of Pakistan Muslim League (N), Siddique al Farooq, has said that Saudi Arab played vital role in release of the American Contract Killer, Raymond Davis.
He has told BBC that family of the victims of Raymond Davis were taken to Saudi Arab to perform Umrah (a religious pilgrimage to the Islamic holy city Mecca, where Khana Kaba and other historical buildings are located).
During Umrah the Saudi authorities convinced the family of Raymond’s victims to accept “blood money, Diyya” for the death of their beloved.

#arabie_séoudite #pakistan

Bahrain under state of emergency - Middle East - Al Jazeera English
►http://english.aljazeera.net//news/middleeast/2011/03/20113151296156152.html

The king of Bahrain has declared a state of emergency for three months on the island following weeks of anti-government protests, state television said.

An order by the king “authorised the commander of Bahrain’s defence forces to take all necessary measures to protect the safety of the country and its citizens,” a statement read out on television on Tuesday said.

The development comes a day after a Saudi-led military forces arrived to help prop up the government, which is facing pressure from the Shia majority to implement reforms.

http://english.aljazeera.net/mritems/Images/2011/3/14/201131418317212436_20.jpg

Pour la zone d’exclusion aérienne, c’est pas la peine d’y penser. #Bahreïn #Arabie_séoudite

Bahreïn : des soldats saoudiens en renfort - L’Express
►http://www.lexpress.fr/actualite/monde/bahrein-des-soldats-saoudiens-en-renfort_971903.html#xtor=AL-447

Plus d’un millier de soldats saoudiens faisant partie de la force commune du Conseil de coopération du Golfe (CCG) sont arrivés dimanche à Bahreïn, selon un responsable saoudien. L’opposition a réagi ce lundi en déclarant, que « toute présence militaire étrangère » serait considérée comme « une occupation ». 

L’Arabie saoudite est le chef de file du CCG, groupement des monarchies arabes du Golfe dont fait partie Bahreïn. Le CCG a exprimé plus d’une fois sa solidarité avec les autorités bahreïnies qui font face à une contestation grandissante, animée essentiellement par des activistes chiites.

#Bahreïn #Arabie_séoudite

Twitter / Bader Kamal
►http://twitter.com/baderkamal/status/46963908694654976

Confirmed: Saudi forces (not army) arrived in Bahrain to help regain security of this country.

#Bahreïn #Arabie_séoudite

L’Arabie Saoudite va-t-elle à son tour se soulever ? - Libération
►http://www.liberation.fr/monde/01012324751-l-arabie-saoudite-va-t-elle-a-son-tour-se-soulever

Mais le régime a prévenu : les lois du royaume interdisent « catégoriquement toutes les formes de manifestations, de marches ou de sit-in », a lancé le ministère de l’Intérieur, samedi, menaçant également d’interventions policières pour faire respecter la loi.

#arabie_séoudite

Omar HASSAN informe l’AFP : Arabie : trois manifestants chiites blessés par balle par la police
►http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jQCVLo2SoippEliuGjXTZx-wcuXA

Trois manifestants chiites ont été blessés jeudi dans l’est de l’Arabie saoudite par des tirs de la police [...] manifestaient à Al-Qatif pour demander la libération de neuf détenus chiites [...] l’est de l’Arabie, où se concentrent les chiites [...] 26 chiites arrêtés au cours des manifestations de la semaine dernière ont été relâchés ces derniers jours [...].

Et le dernier paragraphe parle de quoi ?

Les chiites qui se concentrent notamment dans la province orientale, riche en pétrole, constituent environ 10% de la population de l’Arabie saoudite. Cette communauté se plaint de marginalisation dans un pays régi par le wahhabisme, une doctrine rigoriste sunnite.

Je récapitule, donc : en #arabie_séoudite, selon l’AFP, c’est un problème chiite.

Saudi Arabia bans protest rallies - Al Jazeera English
►http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/03/201135143046557642.html

Saudi Arabia has banned all protests and marches following recent anti-government protests in the kingdom’s east, reports say.

State television on Saturday quoted the interior ministry as saying that security forces would use all measures to prevent any attempt to disrupt public order.

The ban on public demonstrations comes amid media reports of a huge mobilisation of Saudi troops in Shia-dominated provinces in order to quell any possible uprising.

According to The Independent, a British newspaper, 10,000 security personnel are being sent to the region by road, clogging highways into Dammam and other cities.

#Arabie_séoudite

Saudi King to buy Facebook for $150 billion to end the revolt: Goldman Sachs to advise | Dawn Wires: World News 2.0
►http://dawnwires.com/politics/saudi-king-to-buy-facebook-to-end-the-revolt

In what is being termed as pure Wall street Gordon Gecko tactics, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia has decided to make an offer of $150 billion to buy out Facebook. Inside sources within the kingdom suggest that he is very upset with Mark Zukerberg for allowing the revolt to get out of control. In a personal meeting between Mark Zuckerberg and King Abdullah on Jan 25, 2011, Zuckerberg had promised that he would not allow any revolt pages to be formed on Facebook even while he allowed Egypt and Libya revolt pages to be formed. But little did King Abdullah know Zuckerberg. Had he seen the movie “Social Network”, he would have been better advised than to trust Zuckerberg.

#humour #arabie_séoudite #facebook

BAE Systems hires Britain’s former envoy to Saudi Arabia | The Guardian
►http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/feb/18/envoy-saudi-bae-systems

The senior British diplomat who played a central role in pressuring the Serious Fraud Office to drop its investigation into BAE Systems over the al-Yamamah Saudi arms deal has been hired by the defence group, the Guardian has learned.

Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles, who left the Foreign Office last October, will become BAE’s international business development director, focusing on the Middle East and south-east Asia. He starts his new, full-time role next week.

The move is likely to cause uproar among anti-corruption campaigners.

#corruption #Arabie_séoudite #Grande-Bretagne

The Arab Revolution Saudi Update | Saudiwoman’s Weblog
►http://saudiwoman.wordpress.com/2011/02/18/the-arab-revolution-saudi-update

Last night Prince Talal Bin Abdul Alaziz, the king’s half-brother, did a TV interview on BBC Arabia that was widely watched and discussed. In it he warned of an upcoming storm if reforms aren’t dealt with right now. He used the word “evils” to describe what would happen if King Abdullah passed away before ordering the required changes. Prince Talal also strongly advocated a constitutional monarchy and democracy as long as it’s similar to what they have in Kuwait and Jordon. However he hinted that there were people in the ruling family who do not believe in change.

This whole past week was eventful. The first political party to form during King’s Abdullah’s reign, the Islamic Umma Party, has been arrested. According to the party’s released statement, they were informed that they would not be released until they sign a document promising that they will abandon all political aspirations.

In Qatif, a Shia majority area in Eastern Saudi, there is talk that there was a protest demanding the release of political prisoners yesterday. Ahmed Al Omran from SaudiJeans tweeted a pamphlet that was being distributed in Qatif, calling for protests today, Feb 18th, at 8pm.

#Arabie_séoudite

WikiLeaks cables : Saudi Arabia cannot pump enough oil to keep a lid on prices | Business | The Guardian
►http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/feb/08/saudi-oil-reserves-overstated-wikileaks

The US fears that Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest crude oil exporter, may not have enough reserves to prevent oil prices escalating, confidential cables from its embassy in Riyadh show.

The cables, released by WikiLeaks, urge Washington to take seriously a warning from a senior Saudi government oil executive that the kingdom’s crude oil reserves may have been overstated by as much as 300bn barrels – nearly 40%.

The revelation comes as the oil price has soared in recent weeks to more than $100 a barrel on global demand and tensions in the Middle East. Many analysts expect that the Saudis and their Opec cartel partners would pump more oil if rising prices threatened to choke off demand.

Vous faites comme vous voulez, mais moi j’ai fait le plein ce matin.

#pétrole #Arabie_séoudite #cablegate

Février 2007, rencontre de haut niveau entre les États-Unis et l’Arabie séoudite. Parmi les « gros sujets » : toujours la censure d’Al Manar et le soutien à Siniora.

24.02.2007 : APHSCT TOWNSEND FEBRUARY 6 MEETING WITH CROWN PRINCE SULTAN - Nyheter - Wikileaks - Aftenposten.no
►http://www.aftenposten.no/spesial/wikileaksdokumenter/article4025287.ece

The Crown Prince said “we will not hesitate” to cooperate on working with Arabsat to block Al-Manar television broadcasting. He requested that the U.S. fully support the Siniora government in Lebanon, noting said that “positive and rational” steps should be taken to lessen Persian influence over Syria, and confirmed Saudi support for Afghanistan´s President Karzai as a “wise and strong man.”

#Liban #Arabie_séoudite #al_Manar #cablegate

Saudi Arabia bans blogging without a licence | TG Daily
►http://www.tgdaily.com/business-and-law-features/53403-saudi-arabia-bans-blogging-without-a-licence

Under the new rules, to be introduced next month, all online writers - and this appears to include forums and even short messaging - will need a licence, valid for up to three years.

The Saudi government says the move is simply designed to protect society - and points out that it was already censoring content anyway. Saudi Arabia has one of the highest numbers of bloggers in the Arabic world.

Applicants for a licence need to be Saudi, at least 20 years old and to have graduated from high school. They will also need ’documents testifying to their good behaviour’. Editors of online newspapers will need to be approved by the Ministry of Information and Culture.

Anyone caught blogging without a licence will be subject to a fine of up to 100,000 Riyal ($26,665), and/or a ban - possibly forever.

Cette information ne contient aucun des mots #Chavez ou #Iran. Le Monde n’est donc pas intéressé.

#Arabie_séoudite #censure #internet

De mieux en mieux : une semaine après les événements de mai 2008, les séoudiens suggèrent aux Américains l’envoi d’une « force arabe » sous mandat des Nations unies et sous couverture navale et aérienne des États-Unis et de l’OTAN pour chasser le Hezbollah du Liban.

US embassy cables : Saudi prince urges need for ’security response’ to Hezbollah threat in Lebanon | guardian.co.uk
►http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/us-embassy-cables-documents/153797

Opening a discussion with S/I Satterfield focused largely on Iraq, Saud first turned to Lebanon and stated that the effort by “Hizballah and Iran” to take over Beirut was the first step in a process that would lead to the overthrow of the Siniora government and an “Iranian takeover of all Lebanon.” Such a victory, combined with Iranian actions in Iraq and on the Palestinian front, would be a disaster for the US and the entire region. Saud argued that the present situation in Beirut was “entirely military” and that the solution must be military as well. The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) were too fragile to bear more pressure; they needed urgent backing to secure Beirut from Hizballah’s assault. What was needed was an “Arab force” drawn from Arab “periphery” states to deploy to Beirut under the “cover of the UN” and with a significant presence drawn from UNIFIL in south Lebanon “which is sitting doing nothing.” The US and NATO would be asked to provide equipment for such a force as well as logistics, movement support, and “naval and air cover.”

3. (S) Satterfield asked what support this concept had from Siniora and from other Arab states. Saud responded that “Siniora strongly supports,” but that only Jordan and Egypt “as well as Arab League SYG Moussa” were aware of the proposal, lest premature surfacing result in its demise. No contacts had been made with Syria on any Beirut developments, Saud said, adding, “what would be the use?”

An “Easier Battle to Win”
–-

4. (S) Saud said that of all the regional fronts on which Iran was now advancing, the battle in Lebanon to secure peace would be an “easier battle to win” (than Iraq or on the Palestinian front). Satterfield said that the “political and military” feasibility of the undertaking Saud had outlined would appear very much open to question. In particular, attempting to establish a new mandate for UNIFIL would be very problematic. Satterfield said the US would carefully study any Arab decision on a way forward. Saud concluded by underscoring that a UN/Arab peace-keeping force coupled with US air and naval support would “keep out Hezbollah forever” in Lebanon.

Après le « coup du 5 mai » :
►http://seenthis.net/messages/6224
le soutien principal du 14 Mars se verrait bien en train d’envahir et bombarder le Liban. Charmant.

Saud prétend que ce « concept » est « fortement soutenu » par Sanioura. Ça ne prouve rien (ouï-dire), mais ça va encore tanguer pour les 14 Mars...

Saud, représentant d’un des principaux acteurs arabes de la région, utilise l’expression « easy to win » pour désigner, avec les américains :
– une guerre contre le Hezbollah (on s’en doutait),
– mais aussi l’Iraq et « le front palestinien » !
Ce passage est proprement scandaleux.

#cablegate #Liban #Arabie_séoudite #Sanioura