Free Preview of Members-Only Content
To view the requested intelligence, you must be a Stratfor.com member.
The Web sites of two major Iranian media groups carried a story Sept. 3 about a failed coup attempt in Saudi Arabia. English-language news channel Press TV and Arabic-language channel al-Alam both reported that Saudi security forces had foiled a military push to overthrow army officers loyal to King Abdullah. Al-Alam referenced Riyadh-based daily al-Watan, while Press TV cited a week-old report from the Arab paper Aafaq — a U.S.-based publication run by a group seeking political reform in the Arab world, which would obviously have an interest in spreading information that could destabilize the Saudi regime. The Aafaq report itself cited an unnamed security source.
According to the story, an officer of the Saudi Arabian National Guard (SANG), Maj. Ahmed Maiad Zahrani, backed by a Saudi prince, had recruited 150 of his fellow officers to carry out the takeover. The officers in question reportedly were taken in for questioning and later charged with conspiracy. The motive behind the planned coup was apparently twofold: first, to overthrow the SANG leader, who the report identified as someone loyal to King Abdullah, and second, to prevent the selection of another member of the family to replace ailing crown prince Sultan bin Abdel-Aziz.
Such a rift within the Saudi regime, in and of itself, would constitute a significant development if true — and the fact that the Iranians decided to highlight the story renders it even more important. However, a number of details in the original story published by Aafaq suggest that the report is at least questionable if not entirely fictitious. Publicizing it, however, could serve Iran’s purposes as psyops against its rival the Saudi regime.
| Stratfor Members, please log in at the top left hand corner |
