Al Qaeda's looking for new headlines now that they're getting their asses handed to them in Iraq. Gen. Patreus will be reporting soon, so I wonder when Iran and the insurgents will start trying for mass casualty attacks?
An attack on the Saooodi-controlled oil fields would seem to serve a number of purposes for a number of people.
Be a shame if we had to occupy those fields to protect them. The Shi'a living there now as second-class citizens under the Master Race™ might start buying into the ideas their Iraqi cousins have about freedom and democracy. Boy howdy a revolution establishing the Republic of Eastern Arabia along, say, a 50 km-wide strip of land on the Gulf Coast would put us in a real pickle, huh? |
Saudi Arabia has begun setting up a 35,000-strong security force to protect its oil infrastructure from potential attacks.
The move underlines the kingdom's growing concern about its oil installations after threats from al-Qaeda to attack facilities in the Gulf, as well as rising tensions between Iran and the US.
The force already numbers about 5,000 personnel, a Saudi adviser said on Sunday. They are being trained in the use of new surveillance equipment, countermeasures and crisis management under a programme managed by US defence group Lockheed Martin, according to the Middle East Economic Survey in Nicosia. |