Saudi Arabia has failed to provide its intelligence agencies with sufficient assets and instruction to help the United States in its war against terrorism, a new report says. The report by the Washington-based Center for Strategy and International Studies said Saudi Arabia has succeeded in protecting the kingdom from internal threats. But Saudi intelligence agencies have failed to stop the funding of groups listed on the State Department list of terrorist organizations or links between Pakistani religious seminaries that produced Islamic insurgents and Saudi sponsors. "Saudi intelligence activity has been far weaker in dealing with the financial aspects of intelligence and internal security, and has done comparatively little to monitor the role of Saudi charities, religious organizations, and individuals in financing extremist groups -- other than those that posed a direct threat to the rule of the Saudi royal family," the report, authored by senior fellow Anthony Cordesman, said. Cordesman, a former senior Pentagon official, said Saudi intelligence agencies have been effective in monitoring opposition groups overseas and pressuring foreign governments to curb insurgency activities. The report said the kingdom has often been far more effective in using such non-violent means than more violent and aggressive governments like those of Iran and Iraq.
First you have to assume that they want to combat terror. If they're maintaining a sham operation with one hand while actually controlling an international network it's supposed to be chasing with the other, then it makes sense to put somebody's brother or brother-in-law in charge, especially if he's old and his mind's starting to go. |