Saudi Arabia’s Shia Stand Up

The Saudi regime has long viewed the country's restive Shia minority, which accounts for 75% of the population in the Kingdom’s oil-rich Eastern Province, as a proxy of Iran. But, with the empowerment of Shia in Iraq, in neighboring Gulf States, and in Lebanon, the official policy of repression and discrimination is now creating a serious threat to security, if not to the regime.

BEIRUT – On February 24, violent confrontations between Shia pilgrims and the Saudi religious police and security forces occurred at the entrance to the Prophet Mohamed’s Mosque in Medina. The timing and location of the clashes may have serious repercussions for domestic security, if not for the regime itself.

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