Saudi Arabia has urged the US to ramp up attacks on Iran, a Saudi intelligence source has confirmed, while it is weighing a decision on whether to join the fight directly.
The Saudi source confirmed reporting in the New York Times, which said the kingdom’s de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has urged Donald Trump not to cut short his war against Iran, and that the US-Israeli campaign represented a “historic opportunity” to remake the Middle East.
The intelligence source said Riyadh was not just calling for the military campaign to be continued, but to be intensified. Trump appeared to confirm the report about the crown prince’s role, telling journalists on Tuesday: “Yeah, he’s a warrior. He’s fighting with us.”
There are no reports of active Saudi military involvement in the nearly four-week-old war so far, but a Saudi political analyst said the kingdom was likely to take that step if current peace efforts led by Pakistan failed.
“What matters now is Iran’s decision,” Mohammed Alhamed, a Saudi geopolitical analyst, said. “If Iran engages seriously, there is still a path to contain escalation. If it rejects the conditions and continues its attacks, the threshold for Saudi action will be crossed.”
Alhamed added that Saudi Arabia “is not reacting impulsively”. » | Julian Borger and Aram Roston in Washington | Friday, March 27, 2026
Wallahi! as a Muslim might say. So much for brotherhood in Islam! Calling in the infidel to fight your brothers and sisters in Islam!
Actually, this should not surprise us. Not at all! This is a clear manifestation of the Sunni-Shia divide in Islam. Saudi Arabia is predominantly Sunni, though not exclusively. The Eastern Province in Saudi Arabia is home to a significant Shia population, much to the chagrin of the Saudi ruling class. Iran, by contrast, is Shia, though even in Iran, there is a significant Sunni minority, estimated as being between 5 and 10% of the whole population.
Unbeknownst to Trump, he has got himself into a fine pickle with this unnecessary and illegal war, because he has unknowingly enmeshed himself in one of the greatest and most troubling divides in Islam. The distrust and often hatred between Sunnis and Shias goes back centuries and is, in many ways, legendary. It is very much part of the historical narrative. Trump has fallen into the trap. He has become ensnared in a religious and political schism.
This could get ugly. Very ugly! — © Mark Alexander
