Iraq MPs Riyadh fosters terrorism

File photo of Iraqi parliament

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/189519.html

Iraqi parliamentarians have accused Saudi Arabia of variously contributing to the deadly terrorist activities carried out on the violence-hit country's soil.

The lawmakers said Riyadh provides financial and moral support for the terrorist groups in Iraq, a Press TV correspondent reported on Sunday.

They said some terrorist elements, who have been detained in Iraq, have referred to Saudi officials as their patrons.

The lawmakers also accused the kingdom of recruiting terrorists and sending them to Iraq in different ways.

Riyadh fosters terror due to its unease with Baghdad's sound relations with its northern and eastern neighbors, the parliamentarians concluded.

Political analysts say Riyadh has failed in its attempts to prevent the coming into power of the current Shia-led government in Iraq.

The official religion in Saudi Arabia is Wahhabism -- an extremely intolerant interpretation of Islam.

The Saudi Wahhabis, also known as Salafis, have been blamed for fueling and funding terrorism against Shia Muslims as well as others across the world.

Iraqi officials have also pointed to fatwas (religious decrees) issued by some religious authorities in Saudi Arabia, sanctioning the killing of Shia Muslims.

The lawmakers' warnings came as the Saudi authorities have deployed forces to the Shia-majority Persian Gulf island of Bahrain, reinforcing Manama's already brutal crackdown on peaceful protests.