Saudi Arabia

A course for U.S. military officers has been teaching that America's enemy is Islam in general, not just terrorists. The Pentagon suspended the course last month after a student complained, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey said the Joint Forces Staff College was reviewing how curricula are designed. Here are some excerpts of statements from the course: — "They hate everything you stand for and will never coexist with you, unless you submit. " — "Islam as it currently defines itself is an ideology rather than solely a religion with the normally associated protections we...

MANAMA, Bahrain - Tens of thousands of protesters chanting "Bahrain is not for sale" jammed a major highway Friday to denounce proposals for unity between the unrest-torn Gulf kingdom and Saudi Arabia. The rally's large turnout - demonstrators stretched for more than three miles on a major highway - underscored the strong backlash to efforts by Bahrain's rulers to integrate policies such as defense and foreign affairs with their Saudi neighbor. Saudi Arabia has aided Bahrain's embattled Sunni monarchy with troops and money during the island nation's 15-month uprising.

JIDDA, Saudi Arabia -- Lobbing grenades, militants invaded Jidda's heavily guarded US Consulate yesterday, attacking staffers and others in the compound until Saudi security forces stormed in. Nine people, none American, were killed in the attack, which was claimed by Al Qaeda and showed how vulnerable Saudi Arabia remains to Islamic extremist violence. The bold assault, the worst in the kingdom since May, indicated that a fierce crackdown waged by Saudi security forces has not completely put down Al Qaeda in the native land of terrorist leader Osama bin Laden.

Gulf Arab envoys are gathering in Saudi Arabia to discuss proposals for greater political and security cooperation in the wake of an Arab Spring uprising in Bahrain and worries about regional rival Iran. Monday's meeting could support closer integration between Saudi Arabia and protest-wracked Bahrain, where Saudi-led forces were deployed last year to aid the embattled Sunni monarchy. But more expansive union plans among the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council may face questions over how much influence would be handed to ultraconservative Saudi Arabia.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- An American who worked for a US defense contractor was shot and killed yesterday in the Saudi capital, the second deadly shooting of a Westerner in the kingdom in three days. An unknown assailant killed the man in his home, said a spokesman for the man's employer, Vinnell Corp., based in Fairfax, Va. "He was found by another employee at his apartment and taken to a hospital, but did not survive," said the spokesman, Jay McCaffrey. The company identified the victim as Robert C. Jacobs, 62, of Murphysboro, Ill., a seven-year employee of Vinnell, a subsidiary of ...

Saudi Arabia says there is no evidence that Osama bin Laden's wives and family members deported to the kingdom are involved in terrorism. Sunday's statement indicated Saudi Arabia would agree to host the entire 14-member group, including three wives and children of the late al-Qaida leader. They were deported Friday from Pakistan. The state-run Saudi Press Agency cites an official source saying there is no evidence of the family's involvement in any "criminal or illegal acts.

Saudi Arabia and Libya have agreed to restore full diplomatic ties and exchange ambassadors now that longtime Libyan ruler Moammar Gadhafi is no longer in power. The Saudi Press Agency said Sunday that ties between Riyadh and Tripoli would be restored and that the Saudi Embassy in Libya would be reopened. The kingdom recalled its ambassador to Libya during the civil war that began in February. Gadhafi was captured and killed in October. The official news agency said Saudi Arabia wishes to have good relations with Libya's new leaders after years of tension...

WASHINGTON -- Nonessential American diplomats and the families of all US officials in Saudi Arabia should leave, the State Department said yesterday, stepping up its warnings about risks in the country. Private US citizens also should consider departing, the department said. Americans making plans to go to Saudi Arabia were advised to defer any such travel in light of "the potential for further terrorist activities. " The departure of US officials and family members was voluntary, with the US government covering the expenses.

BEIRUT - Saudi Arabia sent Iran a sharp warning over Lebanon yesterday, saying Tehran's support for Hezbollah will damage its relations with other Muslim and Arab countries. More soldiers fanned out through Beirut, with orders to use force to restore security to a nation shaken by nearly a week of sectarian clashes. Lebanese buried more of their dead and tried to resume life in a capital dissected by roadblocks. What began as a political struggle more than a year ago with Shi'ite ministers bolting from the Cabinet devolved last week into Lebanon's worst fighting since the...

Saudi authorities have executed a woman convicted of practicing magic and sorcery. The Saudi Interior Ministry says in a statement the execution took place Monday, but gave no details on the woman's crime. The London-based al-Hayat daily, however, quoted Abdullah al-Mohsen, chief of the religious police who arrested the woman, as saying she had tricked people into thinking she could treat illnesses, charging them $800 per session. The paper said a female investigator followed up, and the woman was arrested in April, 2009, and later...

WASHINGTON - A decade after hijackers mostly from Saudi Arabia attacked the United States with passenger jets, the Saudis have emerged as the principal ally of the United States against Al Qaeda's spinoff group in Yemen and have at least twice disrupted plots to explode sophisticated bombs aboard airlines. Details emerging about the latest unraveled plot revealed that a Saudi double agent fooled the terror group, known as Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, passing himself off as an eager would-be suicide bomber.

A course for U.S. military officers has been teaching that America's enemy is Islam in general, not just terrorists. The Pentagon suspended the course last month after a student complained, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey said the Joint Forces Staff College was reviewing how curricula are designed. Here are some excerpts of statements from the course: — "They hate everything you stand for and will never coexist with you, unless you submit. " — "Islam as it currently defines itself is an ideology rather than solely a religion with the normally associated protections we...

Saudi Arabia's ambassador returned to Cairo on Saturday, a week after he was recalled following a wave of protests against the detention of an Egyptian lawyer that prompted the worst diplomatic row between the two countries in decades. The unexpected Saudi diplomatic break came following days of protests by hundreds of Egyptians outside the Saudi Embassy in Cairo and consulates in other cities to demand the release of Ahmed el-Gezawi, a prominent human rights lawyer. Relatives and rights groups say he was detained for allegedly insulting the kingdom's monarch.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - Saudi Arabia has no evidence that Osama bin Laden's widows and family members deported from Pakistan have been involved in terrorism, an official Saudi statement said Sunday in an indication that authorities will allow the group to remain in the kingdom. The statement also provided more details of the secrecy-shrouded arrival of the late Al Qaeda leader's family, saying they were met in the Red Sea city of Jiddah by other members of bin Laden's extended clan.

SAUDI ARABIA RIYADH - Saudi Arabia closed its Cairo embassy on Saturday and recalled its ambassador after protests over a detained Egyptian human rights lawyer, a sharp escalation of tension between two regional powers already on shaky terms due to uprisings in the Arab world. The diplomatic break followed protests by hundreds of Egyptians in Cairo and other cities to demand the release of Ahmed el-Gezawi, who is accused of insulting the Saudi king. (AP) UKRAINE Ailing jailed leader granted court delay KIEV - A Ukrainian court on Saturday postponed a hearing in the second...

Saudi Arabia says there is no evidence that Osama bin Laden's wives and family members deported to the kingdom are involved in terrorism. Sunday's statement indicated Saudi Arabia would agree to host the entire 14-member group, including three wives and children of the late al-Qaida leader. They were deported Friday from Pakistan. The state-run Saudi Press Agency cites an official source saying there is no evidence of the family's involvement in any "criminal or illegal acts.

Human Rights Watch is calling on Saudi authorities to release scores of political reform advocates jailed in the conservative Muslim kingdom. Saudi Arabia has not seen unrest on the scale of other nations roiled by the Arab Spring. But some demonstrations have taken place, particularly in areas home to the Shiite Muslim minority that has complained for decades about a lack of rights. The government banned all public protests in March. The rights group says authorities arrested 60 men and women who took part in a silent protest in the capital, Riyadh, on Dec. 23. They were...

Saudi Arabia has named a new defense minister to replace the late crown prince who held the post. King Abdullah appointed Prince Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud minister of defense and aviation on Saturday. Prince Salman replaces Crown Prince Sultan, who died Oct. 22. Born in 1935, Prince Salman had served as Riyadh governor for nearly 50 years. He is seen as third in line for the Saudi throne after newly named Crown Prince Nayef. His new job will put him in charge of Saudi weapons deals and give him a greater role in foreign relations.