Saudi tribute to the 44th Baghdad International Fair

[skeetdog]

Thanks Butifldrm...This's a prime example of the advantages Abadi gained by reestablishing their alliance with the Arabic community...Saudi Arabia can bring an iron fist to the table when it comes to security and protection to the territory associated with their responsibilities and concerns...

[Rmc10]

2 hours ago, Butifldrm said:

 

 

 

You guys are sooo funny! I'm cracking up cause I'm a girl!

 

So am I lol. Sometimes it's hard to tell on here. Haha

[Butifldrm]

Saudi Arabia appoints new ambassador to Iraq

By Rudaw 15 hours ago

King Salman of Saudi Arabia [R] receives new ambassadors to a number of countries including to Iraq on November 5, 2017 in Riyadh. Photo:SPA

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Saudi Arabia appointed a new ambassador to Iraq on Sunday, forging further closer relations following high profile visits between Riyadh and Baghdad.

 

Abdulaziz Al-Shammari, who was named charge d'affaires of the Saudi embassy in Iraq in October 2016, was sworn in as the new ambassador before King Salman in Riyadh, Saudi Press Agency reported.

 

The king also appointed new ambassadors to several other countries, including Lebanon.

 

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has visited Saudi Arabia twice this year, in June and October, a move welcomed by the United States which wants to distance Iraq from Tehran, a regional rival to Riyadh.

 

As his American and Iranian allies face off against each other, Abadi has said he does not want them to turn Iraq into their battlefield.

 

Riyadh and Baghdad announced in October they have established a joint cooperation ministerial council to boost bilateral relations.

 

Direct flights between the two began in October for the first time since Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990. 

 

This recent expansion of ties followed a visit by the Saudi foreign minister to Baghdad in February when he met with Abadi.

 

The former Saudi ambassador, Thamer al-Sabhan, now the minister for Gulf Affairs, caused a controversy in Iraq when he criticized the Iranian-backed Shiite militia.

 

Sabhan, Saudi Arabia’s first appointed ambassador since the Gulf War, sparked outrage in Iraq in 2015 when he claimed that “Iranian terrorist personalities” were trying to punish Sunni Arabs during the battle with ISIS for Fallujah.

 

Iraq called on Riyadh to withdraw its ambassador and demanded Saudi Arabia not interfere in its internal affairs. 

 

Saudi Arabia and Iraq cut their diplomatic ties following Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait. 

 

http://www.rudaw.net/english/middleeast/iraq/051120171

 

Riyadh also has a consulate in the Kurdistan Region.

[tigergorzow]

Zero tolerance for corruption: Saudi FM

November 06 2017 09:21 PM

Breaking

Saudi foreign minister Adel Al-Jubeir said on Monday there will be no tolerance with those engaged in corruption cases.

He added the people will be briefed on the truth behind the whole matter.

This come as Saudi Arabia had arrested several princes and minister on corruption charges in a push to fight corruption. 

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19283/Zero-tolerance-for-corruption-Saudi-FM

[pokerplayer]

On ‎11‎/‎5‎/‎2017 at 5:54 AM, Butifldrm said:

Bin Salman prevents private jets from leaving Saudi Arabia

05/11/2017 03:15 | Number of readings: 15

font size:  

Trend Press / Agencies

A number of Saudi citizens were arrested on suspicion of corruption in some of the hotels in the Saudi capital Riyadh and were denied contact until the completion of the investigation, Reuters quoted a Saudi source as saying.

"Saudi authorities are keeping some detainees at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in the diplomatic district of Riyadh," the source said, adding that "the Saudi Crown Prince has ordered that private aircraft be prevented from leaving Saudi Arabia and closing private airfields."

The number of eminent figures arrested by Saudi Arabia's Supreme Anti-Corruption Committee, led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, rose to 49 on

Sunday, including a number of current and former princes, ministers and businessmen.

 

http://aletejahtv.org/permalink/189987.html

 

MT

 

 

  Sounds like the shaking of the money tree has seen the last crop so to speak and those responsible will see just what happens to all the " little people" that for years have been prosecuted in the Kingdom for far less than what they have done.

 

  pp

[tigergorzow]

TV: Saudi king meets Lebanese outgoing prime minister

November 06 2017 02:41 PM

King Salman meets Saad Hariri

A Saudi-owned television station says King Salman received Monday Lebanon’s outgoing prime minister Saad Hariri who resigned during the trip to the kingdom, the Washington Post reported.

 

Hariri’s resignation came in a televised statement from Saudi Arabia on Saturday.

 

In his resignation, Hariri accused Shiite power Iran of meddling in Arab affairs and the Iran-backed Lebanese militant Hezbollah group of holding Lebanon hostage.

The resignation threw Lebanon’s fragile government into disarray. President Michel Aoun said he wouldn’t consider the resignation until it’s delivered to him in person.

It’s uncertain when Hariri will return to Lebanon.

Hezbollah’s leader Hassan Nasrallah speculated on Sunday that Saudi Arabia had forced Hariri to resign amid the deepening Saudi-Iran rivalry.

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19271/TV-Saudi-king-meets-Lebanese-outgoing-prime-minister

[tigergorzow]

Iran, its militias 'real threat to region': Bahrain FM

November 06 2017 07:27 PM

Breaking

Bahraini foreign minister Khalid bin Hamad Al-Khalifa said on Monday Iran and its militias like IMIS, Hezbollah and Asaib Ahl Al-Haq are the main threat to the region.

The remarks come in conjunction with Saudi Arabia's shooting down of a missile fired from Yemen by the Iran-backed Houthis towards Riyadh. 

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19279/Iran-its-militias-real-threat-to-region-Bahrain-FM

[tigergorzow]

Netanyahu: Lebanese PM plea to stop Iran aggression wake up call

November 06 2017 11:00 AM

Netanyahu

 

 

 The international community must heed outgoing Lebanese prime minister Saad al-Hariri’s harsh words against Iranian regional aggression and act against Tehran, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday night. 

This should be a “wake-up call to the international community to take action against the Iranian aggression" that aims that "to turn Syria into a second Lebanon,” Netanyahu said. 

 

“This aggression endangers not only Israel but the entire Middle East. The international community needs to unite and confront this aggression,” he said.

 

He spoke just hours after Hariri’s announcement from Saudi Arabia that he was resigning, fearing his life was in danger.

But as part of his statement, Hariri also attacked Iran for its destabilizing actions both in his country and others in the region.

''I point very clearly to Iran which spreads destruction and strife wherever it is, and witness to that its interventions in the internal matters of the Arab countries, in Lebanon and Syria and Bahrain and Yemen,” Hariri said.

 

Iran, he added, is “driven by a deep hatred for the Arab nation and strong desire to destroy it and control it, and unfortunately it has found among our fellow countrymen those who put their hands in its hands.''

Hariri’s resignation comes as Netanyahu is in London, where he spoke with the British prime minister and foreign secretary about Iran.

During a public conversation at Chatham House on Friday Netanyahu warned that “Iran is devouring one nation after the other” either by direct conquest or by proxy.

Tehran is doing this in Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq and is now moving into Syria where it wants to send militias with thousands of Shiites, Netanyahu said.

It has targeted Syria as part of its drive to create a land bridge to the sea, he added.

“We will block them in Syria,” Netanyahu said.

Iran wanted to “colonize” Syria economically and militarily, and as part of that plan, it wants to place military bases in Syria close to Israel’s border, Netanyahu said.

To illustrate his point, he stood up and used the map on the wall behind him to show the areas where he said Iran plans to gain a military foothold.

“They want to move their air bases to have fighter air craft within seconds of Israel. They want to put Shiite divisions within spitting distance of Israel," Netanyahu said.

Until now Israel has not intervened in Syria, Netanyahu said, save for treating the wounded from that conflict. It has also acted to prevent Iran from moving advanced weapons through Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon. 

“When Hezbollah approached our border, when they tried to extend the terror front they have in Lebanon to Syria, we acted to stop them,” Netanyahu said.

The fall of ISIS has increased the danger, said Netanyahu adding that as “as ISIS contracts, Iran moves in.”

Other Arab nations are also concerned about the Iranian threat, Netanyahu said.

“We are working very hard to establish an effective alliance between Israel and the moderate Sunni states to counter the aggression of Iran, to role it back as far as possible,” Netanyahu said.

He focused in particular on the threat that Iran could build not just one nuclear weapon, but one hundred.

“There is a great danger from rogue regimes having nuclear weapons but the greatest danger to the peace of the world is when a militant Islamic regime meets nuclear weapons,” Netanyahu said.

“We will not let Iran acquire nuclear weapons or a nuclear weapon. We mean what we say and we back that up with action,” Netanyahu said.

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19263/Netanyahu-Lebanese-PM-plea-to-stop-Iran-aggression-wake-up-call

[Butifldrm]

On The Verge Of Catastrophe: Saudi Arabia Says Lebanon Declared War

 

 

by Tyler Durden

Nov 7, 2017 5:41 AM

389

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As expected, Saudi Arabia has cast itself as the victim of external Shia plotting after its internal weekend of chaos which included a missile attack from Yemen, the deaths of two princes and other high officials within a mere 24 hours, and an aggressive crackdown against dissent in the royal family which saw close to a dozen princes placed under house arrest. And as Al Jazeera noted, in this Saudi version of 'Game of Thrones', the 32-year-old Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) shows that he is willing to throw the entire region into jeopardy to wear the royal gown.

While Saudi Arabia has long blamed Iran for sowing unrest in the region, this evening's declaration by Saudi Gulf affairs minister Thamer al-Sabhan that Lebanon has "declared war" against the kingdom is truly an historic first. But perhaps the biggest problem is that international media is currently uncritically spreading the statement, whereas what such a bizarre claim actually warrants is laughter. Thankfully, Nassim Nicholas Taleb sums it up nicely with a basic geography lesson: "Either the media is stupid, or Saudi rulers are stupid, or both. Lebanon did not formally declare war and there is no common border."

Still image taken from a video distributed by Yemen’s pro-Houthi Al Masirah television station, which purports to show the ballistic missile previously launched at Saudi Arabia.

With that in mind, here is the statement currently making headlines as reported by Reuters:

 

 

Saudi Arabia said on Monday that Lebanon had declared war against it because of attacks against the Kingdom by the Lebanese Shi‘ite group Hezbollah.

 

Saudi Gulf affairs minister Thamer al-Sabhan told Al-Arabiya TV that Saad al-Hariri, who announced his resignation as Lebanon’s prime minister on Saturday, had been told that acts of “aggression” by Hezbollah “were considered acts of a declaration of war against Saudi Arabia by Lebanon and by the Lebanese Party of the Devil”.

Though clearly absurd (that Lebanon has declared war on KSA), the statement is driven by legitimate and deep-rooted fear, for not only has Hezbollah transformed itself into a Middle East powerhouse whose influence has grown vastly in the midst of the Syrian war, but it has transitioned into a quasi-state which has gained the respect of Lebanese and Arabs across the region. As we've noted many times before, it is fear of Hezbollah and its increasingly broad acceptance and legitimacy within Lebanese state institutions that also drives heightened Israeli rhetoric and bellicosity of late, which has once again "surprisingly" found itself on the same side as Saudi Arabia.

 

NassimNicholasTaleb 

 

✔@nntaleb

 

No!
No! https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/927672843504177152 …

5:31 PM - Nov 6, 2017

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And at a moment that Israel has begun massive war games, and as MBS continues his purge toward total consolidation of power over the kingdom, both unlikely bedfellows continue their war of words against Hezbollah. It's no secret that common cause in Syria of late has led the historic bitter enemies down a pragmatic path of unspoken cooperation as both seem to have placed the break up of the so-called "Shia crescent" as their primary policy goal in the region. But that's perhaps why few pundits seemed overly shocked when Israeli media reported in early September that bin Salman may have made a secret visit to Israel, in spite of the fact that the kingdom does not recognize the Jewish state, and the two sides do not have diplomatic relations.

Will the current chaotic trajectory of things and unholy alliance between the Saudis and Israelis place Lebanon in the cross hairs of yet another Israeli-Hezbollah war? While we've recently addressed this question, this new and erratic Saudi declaration certainly puts the region a big step closer to such a war becoming a reality.

Though this question of the looming specter of an Israeli-Lebanese War (which would surely involve the Saudis aiding Israel politically inside Lebanon) has been addressed many times over of late, the real question, which isn't often analyzed, is the true military capabilities of Hezbollah. What has both Israel and the Saudis worried is the fact that the Syrian war has possibly strengthened Hezbollah, not weakened it. 

In a follow up article we will disect Hezbollah's military capabilities, and its role in Lebanese society.

 

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-11-06/verge-catastrophe-saudi-arabia-says-lebanon-declared-war

[Butifldrm]

Is Lebanon caught in a Saudi-Iran regional power play?

by Linah Alsaafin & Farah Najjar

21 minutes ago

•  
•  

 

Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri resigned his post on November 6 [Mohamed Azakir/Reuters]

MORE ON LEBANON

• Is Lebanon caught in a Saudi-Iran regional power play?today
• Saudi Arabia says Lebanon 'declaring war' against ittoday
• PM Hariri's resignation threatens Lebanon's fragile stabilitytoday
• Nasrallah: 'It was not our wish for Hariri to resign'yesterday

Recent developments in Saudi Arabia - including the sacking and detention of senior ministers and princes, and the televised resignation of Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri from Riyadh - come in the context of a regional power play by Saudi against Iran, analysts say.

Hariri's resignation occurred just hours before dozens of Saudi princes, ministers, businessmen and religious scholars were arrested under orders from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. In announcing his decision to step down, Hariri, who heads the Sunni-majority Future Movement party, blamed interference in Lebanon by Iran and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah.

Al Jazeera explores who the key players are and how the situation reached this point.

What is Hariri's connection to Saudi Arabia?

Hariri's business and political links to Saudi Arabia stretch back to his father, Rafik Hariri, a business tycoon and former prime minister who was assassinated in 2005, a year after resigning his premiership.

"Saad Hariri inherited his father's business across the kingdom, including partnerships and financial ties with some of the princes included in the purge," said Ibrahim Halawi, a lecturer in contemporary Middle East politics at the Royal Holloway University in London.

OPINION

Is Lebanon on the verge of another conflict?

by Halim Shebaya

The government in Riyadh wanted to "kill two birds with one stone", Halawi told Al Jazeera - consolidating power locally, "which required moving Hariri to Riyadh and allegedly - according to some Lebanese local reports - taking over his assets ... [while] simultaneously attempting to shake Hezbollah's comfortable seat in Hariri's 'unity government'."

Hariri's prime ministership lasted barely a year after a prolonged political deadlock left Lebanon without a president for more than two years and without a parliament for 11 months.

The government was an unusual national unity coalition of pro- and anti-Syria government parties, including Hezbollah and Hariri's Future Movement.

But this underscored for Saudi Arabia the dangers of a coalition composed of parties with opposing interests, particularly when Hezbollah appeared to hold the most sway. Hezbollah has embroiled itself in Syria's civil war as a staunch ally of President Bashar al-Assad, alongside international allies Russia and Iran.

What is behind the anti-Hezbollah sentiment?

Hariri accused Iran of fomenting "disorder and destruction" and meddling in the internal affairs of Lebanon and other Arab states. He described Hezbollah as "Iran's arm" in Lebanon, noting: "They have built a state within a state."

Hariri's resignation speech echoed a tweet by Saudi Minister of State for Gulf Affairs Thamer al-Sabhan, who had met Hariri a few days earlier. In his tweet, Sabhan said: "The hands of treachery and aggression must be amputated" - a reference to Hezbollah and Iran.

"Lebanon after [Hariri's] resignation will not be like it was before," he tweeted on Monday. "It will not accept being used as a platform to spring terrorism onto our countries. It is up to their leaders to decide whether they want to be a peaceful or terrorist state." 

Lina Khatib, head of the Middle East and North Africa programme at Chatham House, told Al Jazeera that Hariri's resignation from Riyadh was a clear sign that Saudi Arabia is no longer "willing to accommodate Iranian influence" in Lebanon.

WATCH: Iran-Saudi tensions - Lebanon PM Hariri's resignation seen as ploy (2:14)

 

"The announcement of the resignation from Riyadh sends the message that Saad Hariri is firmly aligned with Saudi Arabia, making his resignation more of an episode in the Saudi-Iranian rivalry than an internal Lebanese affair," she said.

Khatib noted that Hariri's position in a government with Hezbollah representatives was "not sustainable".

"Instead of being able to stand up to Iran's interests from within the government, he was becoming increasingly closer to accommodating those interests," she said.

What will happen to Lebanon's government?

In a televised speech, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah rejected claims of Iranian meddling and said the decision was "Saudi-imposed". He went on to denounce the tone and text of Hariri's speech and questioned the motive behind the surprise resignation.

In light of Hariri's resignation, the current national unity government is likely to fall, leaving the country facing an "indefinite period of political vacuum," Khatib said. Being one of the country's strongest political parties, Hezbollah is still a "tool for realising Iranian interests" in the region, she added.

Firas Maksad, a political analyst and managing director of Global Policy Advisors, told Al Jazeera that as the dominant power in Lebanon, Hezbollah has "the most to lose and would rather remain focused on their fight in Syria".

"One plausible scenario has Lebanon limping along with a caretaker government, unable to form a new cabinet without securing the approval of Hariri's Future Movement," he said.

Though there is little doubt that Saudi Arabia enjoys "significant influence in Lebanon", there are also domestic factors, he said.

WATCH: Hariri's resignation threatens Lebanon's fragile stability

 

"Hariri entered into a coalition government with Hezbollah on the basis of a political compromise, which steadily eroded over the past year," Maksad said.

"Instead, Hariri's continuation in government came to provide political cover for Hezbollah's activities, including its deepening military involvements in Syria, Yemen and Iraq, regular verbal assaults against Saudi Arabia, and its recent pressuring of the Lebanese government to restore diplomatic ties with the Assad regime."

Who has the regional advantage?

Iran's influence in the region has significantly increased over the past few years, particularly in the context of limiting the expansion and influence of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group (ISIL, also known as ISIS). In Iraq, Iranian-backed Shia-dominated paramilitaries known as the Popular Mobilisation Forces have been dubbed as the country's second - and stronger - army.

In Yemen, Saudi remains deadlocked in a war waged since March 2015 against the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, who have been fighting against the Saudi-backed central government.

"The Saudis are clearly stepping up their zero-sum rivalry with Iran throughout the region," Ali Vaez, an Iran expert with the International Crisis Group, told Al Jazeera. "Iran has had the upper hand so far in the competition over regional influence, but the Saudis are hoping that the Trump administration would tilt the balance in their favour."

One example of that, Halawi noted, is the US attempt to increase pressure on Hezbollah.

"The US is trying to tease Hezbollah's high ground through its recent wave of sanctions against its funders and members, and pressuring the Lebanese financial establishment to fully comply with the sanctions strategy," he said.

Who is leading the charge in Saudi?

Khatib noted that the recent upheaval in Saudi Arabia aims to consolidate the authority of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, empowering him to set the country's foreign policy agenda.

The 32-year-old heads Saudi's new anti-corruption committee, aimed at "identifying offences, crimes, and persons and entities involved in cases of public corruption", with the power to issue arrest warrants, impose travel bans, freeze accounts and track funds and assets.

The probe, which has purged Saudi royals, senior ministers and businessmen, appears to be widening, while it remains unclear whether Hariri will return to Lebanon.

OPINION

Secular despots - coming soon to an Arab state near you

by Hamid Dabashi

Over the past year, Mohammed bin Salman has become the ultimate decision-maker for the kingdom's military, foreign, economic and social policies, championing his "Vision 2030" plan, which includes subsidy cuts, tax hikes and sales of state assets.

According to Luciano Zaccara, a Gulf politics researcher at Qatar University, the events of the past few days are a testament to Mohammed bin Salman's ability to lead the fight against Iran and its allies.

"The coincidence with the internal changes in Saudi proves that the succession towards Mohammed bin Salman is approaching, and that Saudi needs to make sure that nobody will challenge the legitimacy of Mohammed bin Salman as the new ruler, neither internally nor regionally," Zaccara said.

"For that, proving that Saudi has leverage in other countries, such as Lebanon, and that they can prevent the Iranian influence to extend there is an asset for Mohammed bin Salman, to demonstrate his external power, which is coupled internally with the fact that he is eliminating any possible internal challenge to his authority once the transition is done."

SOURCE: AL JAZEERA NEWS

 

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/11/lebanon-caught-saudi-iran-regional-power-play-171107075704436.html

[yota691]

Arab Meeting for the Preparation of the Standard Agreement on Capital Investment in Arab Countries

Tuesday, 1439/28 AH corresponding to 2017/11/07 SPA

 

 

Cairo, 18 Safar 1439H (07 November 2017) 
The meeting of the Committee of Experts on Investment in the Arab States was held at the headquarters of the League of Arab States to prepare an explanatory memorandum to the unified agreement for the investment of Arab capital. 
According to a statement issued by the Arab League today, the meeting discussed the interpretation of the provisions of the unified agreement for the investment of Arab capital in the Arab countries, in a manner that ensures the presentation of these interpretations and recommendations of the meeting to the Economic and Social Council of the League of Arab States until the Convention is ratified and ratified by countries Members.
Under this agreement, it allows States Parties to freely transfer Arab capital freely and to encourage and facilitate the investment of such funds. Such States shall undertake to protect the investor and investments and their returns. The Arab capital of the host State shall enjoy fair and equitable treatment at all times. . 
// // ended 

 

 

 

 

16:18 t m 

[tigergorzow]

Bin Salman to vanquish Mullah's regime

November 07 2017 08:36 PM

Bin Salman to vanquish Mullah's regime

 

The Baghdad Post

 

 

 

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman Al Saud represents a real challenge for the Iranian Mullah's regime.

Salman announced that he will not have any dialogue with Mullah's terrorist regime, as all diplomatic ways have been undermined by this despotic rule that oppresses the Iranian people.

Salman's policy succeeded very well during the ongoing year.

This happened as Saudi Arabia decimated Mullah's regime influence in Iraq and won the Iraqi people's hearts.

It also constructed the Saudi-Iraqi cooperation council after over 20 years of severed relations between Baghdad and Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia also united the world in its US-Islamic summit that convinced the international community of Mullah's regime menace. The summit's conclusion was to declare Khamenei's regime as terrorists, asserting the urgent need to topple it and its terrorist militias in the Middle East.

Bin Salaman also reinforced his relations with US, making their relations stronger than ever by uniting both sides on one goal, which is decimating Tehran's Mullah's regime.

Saudi Arabia's Arab Coalition also toppled Iran's Houthi militias in Yemen by achieving repeated victories against the terrorist militias.

It has also destroyed the Russian-Iranian alliance, by convincing Moscow of the immanent dangers of Mullah's regime.

The ongoing political events prove that Saudi Arabia has gone in great lengths under the leadership of the Custodian of the two holy mosques to rid the world of this terrorist regime.

After the recent Iranian-backed Houthi ballistic missile attack against Saudi Arabia, it will be very likely that Saudi Arabia will teach Mullah's regime a lesson, as this act is considered a direct act of war.

It is time to confront Mullah's regime, clip its bloody claws that deformed the Middle East.

Mullah's regime end will be at the hands of Mohammad Bin Salman.

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19324/Bin-Salman-to-vanquish-Mullah-s-regime

[pokerplayer]

3 minutes ago, tigergorzow said:

Bin Salman to vanquish Mullah's regime

 

November 07 2017 08:36 PM

Bin Salman to vanquish Mullah's regime

 

The Baghdad Post

 

 

 

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman Al Saud represents a real challenge for the Iranian Mullah's regime.

Salman announced that he will not have any dialogue with Mullah's terrorist regime, as all diplomatic ways have been undermined by this despotic rule that oppresses the Iranian people.

Salman's policy succeeded very well during the ongoing year.

This happened as Saudi Arabia decimated Mullah's regime influence in Iraq and won the Iraqi people's hearts.

It also constructed the Saudi-Iraqi cooperation council after over 20 years of severed relations between Baghdad and Riyadh.

Saudi Arabia also united the world in its US-Islamic summit that convinced the international community of Mullah's regime menace. The summit's conclusion was to declare Khamenei's regime as terrorists, asserting the urgent need to topple it and its terrorist militias in the Middle East.

Bin Salaman also reinforced his relations with US, making their relations stronger than ever by uniting both sides on one goal, which is decimating Tehran's Mullah's regime.

Saudi Arabia's Arab Coalition also toppled Iran's Houthi militias in Yemen by achieving repeated victories against the terrorist militias.

It has also destroyed the Russian-Iranian alliance, by convincing Moscow of the immanent dangers of Mullah's regime.

The ongoing political events prove that Saudi Arabia has gone in great lengths under the leadership of the Custodian of the two holy mosques to rid the world of this terrorist regime.

After the recent Iranian-backed Houthi ballistic missile attack against Saudi Arabia, it will be very likely that Saudi Arabia will teach Mullah's regime a lesson, as this act is considered a direct act of war.

It is time to confront Mullah's regime, clip its bloody claws that deformed the Middle East.

Mullah's regime end will be at the hands of Mohammad Bin Salman.

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19324/Bin-Salman-to-vanquish-Mullah-s-regime

 

Time to break out the popcorn and a nice bottle of red wine, it's going to get Interesting right quick.

 

  Thxs for all the great articles Tiger, muchly appreciated.

 

pp

 

ps: is muchly even a word ?

[Butifldrm]

We will know Iraq is serious about cleaning up the corruption, when we see this type of action!

 

Saudi Purge Goes Nuclear: Over 1,200 Bank Accounts Frozen

 

 

by Tyler Durden

Nov 7, 2017 12:36 PM

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One day after we reported that Saudi Arabia has started to freeze the accounts of the dozens of arrested royals, ministers and businessmen, in the process allowing Mohammed bin Salman to further cement control over the Kingdom, the Kingdom has taken its "money laundering" crackdown to the next level and on Tuesday, Saudi banks have frozen more than 1,200 accounts belonging to individuals and companies in the kingdom as part of the government’s anti-corruption purge, bankers and lawyers told Reuters, adding that "the number is continuing to rise."

Since the "countercoup" on Sunday, the Saudi central bank has been expanding the list of accounts it is requiring lenders to freeze on an almost hourly basis, a regional banker told Reuters, and while he did not name the companies affected , he said they included listed and unlisted firms across many sectors.

The banker also said that if the freezes stayed in place for long, they could start to hurt day-to-day business activities such as paying staff and creditors or making other transactions. A second banker said, however, that most of the frozen accounts belonged to individuals rather than companies, and that banks were being allowed by the regulator to continue to fund existing commitments.

In an e-mailed statement, the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority, or SAMA, said suspension of bank accounts of “persons of interest” is in response to Attorney General’s request pending the legal cases against them, according to Governor Ahmed Abdulkarim Alkholifey says in emailed statement.  SAMA clarified that individual accounts, rather than corporate businesses, have been put in suspension until final court rulings, and explained that - for now - corporate businesses remain unaffected, which means that are no restrictions on money transfers through proper banking channels. Assuming, of course, one isn't an "individual" on MbS's black list, and the money in the bank has effectively been nationalized.

For now, it remains unclear what the total potential haul from the bank account crackdown would be. Yesterday we reported that just the 4 billionaires named previously, and who were arrested over the weekend including Pricne Alwaleed, have no less than $33 billion in net worth at risk.

 

Among top business executives detained in the probe are billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chairman of investment firm Kingdom Holding; Nasser al Tayyar, founder of Al Tayyar Travel; and Amr al-Dabbagh, chairman of builder Red Sea International. The stocks of all three companies, which have issued statements saying they continue to operate as normal, plunged another 9-10% on Tuesday.

So when could the confiscatory process end? As we jokingly suggested yesterday, the ruling Saudi royal family has realized that not only can it crush any potential dissent by arresting dozens of potential coup-plotters, it can also replenish the country's foreign reserves, which in the past 3 years have declined by over $250 billion, by confiscating some or all of their generous wealth, which is in the tens if not hundreds of billions. If MbS continues going down the list, he just may recoup a substantial enough amount to what it makes a difference on the sovereign account.

 

He will naturally also provoke enough anger to start civil unrest, if not a domestic war, but let's cross that bridge when we get to it.

 

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-11-07/saudi-purge-goes-nuclear-over-1200-bank-accounts-frozen

[tigergorzow]

7 minutes ago, pokerplayer said:

 

Time to break out the popcorn and a nice bottle of red wine, it's going to get Interesting right quick.

 

  Thxs for all the great articles Tiger, muchly appreciated.

 

pp

 

ps: is muchly even a word ?

PP,  Yup & Yup if you say it then it is a word here on DV......

[tigergorzow]

1 minute ago, Butifldrm said:

Saudi Purge Goes Nuclear: Over 1,200 Bank Accounts Frozen

Butifldrm Thanks,  The Saudi's are kicking arses and taking action.....PM Abadi needs to follow suit and take "TIPS" from the "King & Prince Playbook"

 

GO JUSTICE!!!!!!

[Wiljor]

Thanks Yota, Butifldrm, tiger, for the continued updates on this topic. Something is up here with the Saudis and Iraq, they are beginning to come down with the hammer fist on the corruption and good for them. Could it be that these two are going to team up and be the new power house of the ME? Being top oil producers, is their a master plan we are not privileged enough to be in the know as of yet? Is it coincidence that oil has been making a huge comeback in the last few weeks? 

Maybe I’m way out in left field on this but I feel that something is cooking between these two nations,  the world wants transparency, Abadi wants iraq in the world markets, I dunno maybe HCL is knocking on the door  I am ready, and,  stoked about all the strides Iraq has been making lately DV 

[tigergorzow]

 

Fury in Tehran as King Salman receives Hariri

November 07 2017 09:34 AM

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19294/Fury-in-Tehran-as-King-Salman-receives-Hariri#section_221

Last Modified: 11 07 2017 10:27 AM

 

[tigergorzow]

Saudi Arabia freezes over 1,200 bank accounts in corruption probe

November 07 2017 06:18 PM

Saudi Arabia freezes over 1,200 bank accounts in corruption probe

 

Saudi Arabian banks have frozen more than 1,200 accounts belonging to individuals and companies in the kingdom as part of the government’s anti-corruption purge, Reuters quoted bankers and lawyers on Tuesday.

They added that the number is continuing to rise.

Dozens of royal family members, officials and business executives have been detained in the crackdown and are facing accusations of money laundering, bribery, extorting officials and taking advantage of public office for personal gain.

Since Sunday, the central bank has been expanding the list of accounts it is requiring lenders to freeze on an almost hourly basis, one regional banker said, declining to be named because he was not authorized to speak to media.

The banker did not name the companies affected but said they included listed and unlisted firms across many sectors.

A second banker said, however, that most of the frozen accounts belonged to individuals rather than companies, and that banks were being allowed by the regulator to continue to fund existing commitments.

Among top business executives detained in the probe are billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chairman of investment firm Kingdom Holding; Nasser bin Aqeel al-Tayyar, founder of Al Tayyar Travel; and Amr al-Dabbagh, chairman of builder Red Sea International.

The stocks of all three companies, which have issued statements saying they continue to operate as normal, plunged between 9 and 10 percent on Tuesday.

One of the bankers said the central bank had met with some foreign banks this week to reassure them that the freezing of accounts targeted individuals, and that firms linked to those people would not be damaged.

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19318/Saudi-Arabia-freezes-over-1-200-bank-accounts-in-corruption-probe

[tigergorzow]

Trump tweets support for King Salman, Crown Prince over latest measures

November 07 2017 11:28 AM

Trump expresses 'great confidence' in Saudi regime

 

 

US President Donald Trump vouched for Saudi Arabia’s king and crown prince after the weekend arrests of princes, businessmen and officials in an anti-corruption drive that has rattled the kingdom, Bloomberg reported.

“I have great confidence in King Salman and the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, they know exactly what they are doing,” Trump said in a tweet Tuesday morning from Japan.

 

 

....Some of those they are harshly treating have been “milking” their country for years!

 

On Monday, Saudi Arabia’s attorney general said that the arrests were only “phase one” of a drive against corruption.

It was “merely the start of a vital process to root out corruption wherever it exists,” Sheikh Saud Al Mojeb said in a statement. The suspects will have access to legal counsel and pledged to hold trials “in a timely and open manner,” he said.

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19301/Trump-tweets-support-for-King-Salman-Crown-Prince-over-latest-measures

[tigergorzow]

Pentagon: US backs Saudi Arabia to end Iran's influence in Region

November 07 2017 09:54 AM

Pentagon: US backs Saudi Arabia to end Iran's influence in Region

 

The US praised Saudi Arabia for "exposing" Iran's role in Yemen and Tehran's provision of missile systems to Houthi terrorists, The New York Times newspaper reported.

"We continue to maintain strong defense ties with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and work together on common security priorities to include combat operations against violent extremist organizations, and neutralizing Iran's destabilizing influence in the Middle East region," said Pentagon spokesman Marine Major Adrian Rankine-Galloway.

On Saturday night, Saudi Arabia's Royal Air Defense announced it downed an destroyed a ballistic missile in northeastern the capital Riyadh. 

Since March 2015, a Saudi-led military coalition has been fighting the Houthi terrorists in the Arab peninsula state of Yemen.

 

http://www.thebaghdadpost.com/en/story/19296/Pentagon-US-backs-Saudi-Arabia-to-end-Iran-s-influence-in-Region

[yota691]

Erdogan: Middle East is undergoing radical restructuring

07/11/2017

 

 

(Independent) .. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Tuesday, November 7, 2017, the developments in the Middle East is not random, and has dimensions close or far to Turkey.

Erdogan said in his weekly speech to the deputies of his party in the Turkish parliament in Ankara that events in the world and the region indicate that there is a radical restructuring that will shape the features of the next century.

He pointed out that his country is going through a stage that is the most sensitive since the war of independence that his country fought against the invading forces that occupied areas of Anatolia after the First World War.

He pointed out that each of the events that occurred in his country, in the past four or five years, appear to be a chapter of the plot of the plot against Turkey.

He stressed that the terrorist organizations were used during that period in order to subjugate his country through a project that begins with attempts to provoke social chaos in Turkey, and continues through the targeting of terrorist attacks.

He stressed that his country will not stop fighting terrorism and will continue its military operations against him in the winter as well.

[Wiljor]

Thanks Yota,

“ME undergoing radical restructuring”  wow ain’t that the truth 

Can’t wait to see my bank account undergo some restructuring as well 

[Wiljor]

Iraq, November 8, 2017 

Saudi Arabia has appointed Abdulaziz Al-Shammari as its new ambassador to Iraq.

Al-Shammari, who has been Charge d’Affaires of the Saudi embassy in Iraq since October 2016, was sworn in on Sunday before King Salman in Riyadh.

Relations between the two countries have been improving recently, with high-level visits, the opening of the border crossing, and new air routes.

businessnews

 

http://iraqdailyjournal.com/story-z16179920

[Butifldrm]

 

 

 

Bannon: ‘The Middle East Is on a Knife Edge in the Last 48 to 72 Hours’

3962

 

 

 

Associated Press

by JOHN HAYWARD6 Nov 2017920

Breitbart News Executive Chairman Steve Bannon analyzed the dramatic weekend events in Saudi Arabia on Monday’s edition ofBreitbart News Daily on the SiriusXM Patriot Channel.

Bannon said a driving force behind the transformation of Saudi Arabia and other major events in the Middle East is the recognition by many regional powers that “President Trump and the United States of America have had enough of it and are just not going to tolerate anymore this financing, the exporting of radical Islamic terror into Western Europe and the United States.”

He recalled Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s giving a landmark speech several years ago about “how Islam had to reform itself internally to Islam, just like Christianity went through a huge reformation.”

“In fact, I think the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Reformation was a couple of weeks ago,” he remarked. “Christianity had gone through things like the Thirty Years War and the Reformation, et cetera, to reform itself. By the way, I’m a Catholic, so I’m not saying everything in the Reformation was great.”

“My point is, these religions go through internal reformations: Gen. Sisi in Egypt, Mohammed bin Zayed in the United Arab Emirates, MBS, the new Crown Prince in Saudi Arabia. These guys have been at the forefront of trying to modernize and reform Islam internally, with Muslims doing their reformation,” said Bannon.

“One the things that you’ve seen at the summit President Trump had in the spring is that the United States is not prepared to tolerate any more people in the Middle East financing the exporting of radical Islamic terrorism into Western Europe in the United States. I think you’re seeing some of the leaders over there take active control of this,” he proposed.

“This was the whole thing I said at the Hudson Institute, that the Qatar situation is, I believe today – even with everything going on in the Northwest Pacific – the most important national security and foreign policy situation the United States has,” Bannon argued. “You can tell now with what’s happening with the Kurds and what’s happening in Turkey and Lebanon with the prime minister stepping down, thinking he could be assassinated. The Middle East, I’m telling you right now, is on a knife’s edge, in the last 48 or 72 hours.”

“And I’ve got to tell you, for all the elites out in the world, the Party of Davos guys are sitting there today gobsmacked, absolutely shocked,” he said. “The largest financier in the Arab world, the Muslim world, is Prince Alwaleed. He’s got stakes in just about every high-tech company. He’s a huge partner of Rupert Murdoch. When he came to the United States back in the early nineties, he was actually a client of my firm as he got into Hollywood; he got into media. He owns a huge stake in Citicorp, he saved Citicorp from going bankrupt.”

“People are stunned today that he was put under house arrest, put under arrest yesterday in Saudi Arabia, in this situation of what they called corruption, money laundering, et cetera. People are thinking this is directly tied to the financing of the Muslim Brotherhood, this whole thing about cleaning up Saudi Arabia to take care of this. You’re going to see a lot of changes. This thing is far, far from over. You’re at the top of the first inning. You’re probably at the first batter,” Bannon said.

“Look at what’s happening in Iraq now. Look at what’s happening with this expansionist Persia, Erdogan; John Bolton just said it. Erdogan is going to announce an Ottoman caliphate on the 100th anniversary of Ataturk. I’ve said it from day one: Erdogan is one of the most dangerous guys on the world stage. He believes in his heart that he’s a man of history. Those guys can be dangerous. We’ve got a mess in the Middle East, and President Trump, I think, has done a tremendous job of representing the vital national security interests of the United States over there,” he declared.

Bannon said that at President Trump’s summit meeting with dozens of Arab nations in Saudi Arabia, “modernization and reformation” were a big part of the agenda.

“MBS, the young Crown Prince, put this thing called Vision 2030 out there, which was to revitalize and change the economy. His point was, the oil is not going to be here forever. We have to do something to get ourselves off of oil. We have to make ourselves more productive. We have to become more engaged in technology, et cetera. Along those lines, he started to do some pretty fundamental things along with women’s rights, women’s empowerment in the modernization over there,” he recalled.

“I tell people, you’re not going to wave a wand or snap your fingers. It’s not going to happen immediately. But you’re seeing, I think, pretty big fundamental changes take place,” he said, noting the enthusiastic support President Trump expressed for those changes in his weekend phone call from Japan to Saudi King Salman.

 

http://www.breitbart.com/radio/2017/11/06/bannon-middle-east-knife-edge-last-48-72-hours/