While we focus on the beheadings in the fight with ISIS in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia has beheaded 57 criminals this year, according to Agence France-Presse. The most recent beheading was for the crime of drug smuggling.
Is there a double-standard in our dealings with the different countries of the Middle East? Does it have a relationship to oil and economics?
More:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/Flash.aspx/320976#.VSQIEfnF9AQ
Saudi Arabia launched airstrikes in Yemen on Wednesday as part of a military offensive against Houthi rebels in the country, states Slate. A ground invasion could follow, states MSNBC.
The Saudi airstrikes continued today, state sources.
The Shiite Houthi rebels – backed by Shiite Iran – made significant enough advances to drive U.S.-backed President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi from the country on Wednesday.
Egyptian security and military officials told the Associated Press that Saudi Arabia and Egypt will lead a ground operation in Yemen against the rebels and their allies after an airstrike campaign.
Three senior officials told the Associated Press that forces would enter by land from Saudi Arabia and by sea from the Red Sea and Arabian Sea, states CNBC.
New allegations have emerged from the man described as the “20th 9/11 hijacker,” alleging members of the Saudi royal family supported al Qaeda.
According to CNN, Zacarias Moussaoui, who pleaded guilty in 2005 to six terror-related charges, makes the allegations in a sworn statement contained in a brief submitted Tuesday as part of an ongoing civil case by the families of 9/11 victims.
Moussaoui says that in the late 1990s, he was tasked by Osama bin Laden to create a digital database recording al Qaeda’s donors. Every day for two or three months, he says, he entered names of the group’s donors into a Toshiba computer, along with how much they gave.
According to a press release from the U.S. Department of Defense, attendees at the National Defense University have been asked to do a written tribute to the “life and leadership” of the “Saudi Arabian monarch.”
Headed by Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey, the essay contest will focus on both Abdullah and the region as a whole.
“This is an important opportunity to honor the memory of the king, while also fostering scholarly research on the Arab-Muslim world, and I can think of no better home for such an initiative than NDU,” Dempsey said.
Dempsey went one step further in his idolization of the ex-ruler by calling him a man of “remarkable character and courage.”
“In my job to train and advise his military forces, and in our relationship since, I found the king to be a man of remarkable character and courage,” Dempsey said.
Since Abdullah’s passing, members of the U.S. establishment have given endless praise to the former dictator, seemingly ignoring his barbaric rule and world-renowned brutality.
As noted by the Intercept’s Murtaza Hussain, prominent U.S. leaders such as John McCain, Joe Biden and John Kerry wasted no time in highlighting Abdullah’s alleged accomplishments following his death.
In a statement last night Senator John McCain eulogized Abdullah as ‘a vocal advocate for peace, speaking out against violence in the Middle East.’ John Kerry described the late monarch as ‘a brave partner in fighting violent extremism’ and ‘a proponent of peace.’
Not to be outdone, Vice President Joe Biden released a statement mourning Abdullah and announced that he would be personally leading a presidential delegation to offer condolences on his passing.
The president also expressed grief over the loss of Abdullah, pointing to his so-called “search for peace.”
The British government and the Royal Family paid their respects to the dictator by ordering all flags over state buildings and palaces to be flown at half mast, a move which produced a backlash among some public figures in Britain.
In reality, King Abdullah’s leadership produced atrocities nearly identical to that of alleged enemies the Islamic State.
Western leaders made no mention of the country’s “record level” beheadings in 2014 for crimes such as adultery, apostasy and “sorcery.”
Source: Mikael Thalen
Majority Report gives their take on some of the things King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia did and how the media has talked about this wonderful man after his death.
According to The Middle East Eye:
“…the late king has been recently condemned for a raft of human rights abuses including a spike in state implemented beheadings.
“At least 15 people have been executed in the kingdom in 2015 – including a woman publicly beheaded in Mecca who was convicted of murder. The recent flogging of jailed liberal blogger Raif Badawi has caused international uproar and Saudi Arabia remains the only country where women are barred from driving.”
Majority Report
More:
Conservative commentator Glenn Beck is being sued by a Saudi Arabian student who Beck repeatedly accused of being affiliated with the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.
Abdulrahman Alharbi’s allegations “easily permit an inference” that Beck, his company The Blaze Inc, and a distributor of his radio show were negligent toward him over Beck’s comments.
The lawsuit claims that Beck made repeated false statements about Alharbi on his radio show, including that he helped fund the bombing, even after the probe was dropped.
Alharbi, 21, had been a spectator near the marathon’s finish line on April 15, 2013, and suffered minor injuries when two homemade pressure-cooker bombs went off in the crowd.
He was later mentioned in news reports as federal authorities briefly investigated him, but quickly concluded he had no involvement.
Reuters article:
http://news.yahoo.com/glenn-beck-must-face-saudis-lawsuit-over-boston-170459994.html
OK, Fine. 