How IS Seeks Sectarian War in Saudi Arabia

BBC AMERICA: Saudi Arabia has now suffered three deliberate attacks by supporters of Islamic State (IS) on the restive Shia Muslim minority living in the country's oil-rich Eastern Province.

The first, in November 2014, was a gun attack. And, in May 2015, there have been two devastating suicide bomb blasts targeting worshippers at Friday prayers.

The last two attacks used RDX, a powerful military explosive, and have been claimed by IS's self-styled Najd Province, named after Saudi Arabia's staunchly conservative Sunni heartland, the desert plateau in the middle of the country.

So what is IS trying to achieve and will it succeed?

These attacks are a watershed for Saudi Arabia.

How it reacts now and in the coming months will determine whether the largest and most important Arab state can stave off a wider sectarian conflict between the country's majority Sunni and minority Shia Muslim populations, something that would be disastrous for both communities.

The attacks follow decades of state and religious discrimination against the Shia minority, who constitute about 10% of the population. » | Frank Gardner, BBC security correspondent | Thursday, June 04, 2015

Sectarian Tensions Running High, Say Australian Muslim Leaders

CNN: (CNN) -- Muslim community leaders in Australia say sectarian tensions are soaring, as radicalized Sunni youth, inspired by ISIS, seek to import the religious conflicts wracking the Middle East.

"The tensions are very high and will continue to be high," said Jamal Daoud, a Shia community leader in Sydney, where a 47-year old Shia leader was shot in the shoulder early Monday morning, as worshipers observed the Shia ritual of Ashura.

He said Rasoul Al Mousawi, a leader in the Shia community focused around the Islamic center in Greenacre, south-west Sydney, had been released from hospital on Tuesday and was doing well.

The attack was only one incident in a string of attacks and threats against Shia Muslims by Sunni extremists who sympathized with ISIS, he claimed, and had followed an incident where a group of men had driven past the Islamic center, yelling comments such as "IS lives forever" and "Shia dogs" in Arabic.

A security guard had also been attacked by a group of men who appeared to be followers of the austere Wahhabi tradition of Sunni Islam on Friday, he said.

"There's high tension between Sunni and Shia, but these extremists, they threaten and attack Sunnis too," he said.

"Anyone who speaks against the fighting in Syria and advocating the government to take action against people in Iraq and Syria -- they are threatened and attacked."

Jamal Rifi, a Sydney-based GP and Sunni community leader, agreed, saying sectarian tensions were at an unprecedented level as a result of the brutal Syrian conflict, and the appeal of ISIS to radicalized Sunni youth in Australia. » | Tim Hume, CNN | Thursday, November 06, 2014

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Australia: Shooting Sparks Fear of Muslim Sectarian Violence

THE AUSTRALIAN: FEARS of Muslim sectarian violence spilling into the suburbs of Australia are rising after the shooting early yesterday of a man outside a Sydney prayer centre.

The attack, on a 47-year-old ­father of five at a Shia establishment, happened in front of his family on one of the holiest days of the Shia Muslim calendar.

The man, identified as Rasoul Al-Musawi, was standing outside the prayer hall in Greenacre, in Sydney’s southwest about 1.15am when he was struck in the face and shoulder with pellets. He was expected to undergo surgery. His injuries are not considered life-threatening. » | Anthony Klan | Journalist | Sydney | Tuesday, November 04, 2014

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The Prophet's Curse: Islam's Ancient Divide Fuels Middle East Conflicts

SPIEGEL ONLINE INTERNATIONAL: They began as a cry for freedom in the Middle East, but the Arab rebellions have become increasingly characterized by an ancient sectarian conflict between Sunni and Shiite Muslims. SPIEGEL examines how the power struggle between the two groups is sparking new fears along old frontlines.

In the countries that follow the Muslim faith, the lines between past and present often blur, making it seem as though the past is not over, and certainly not forgiven. Indeed, the past can come terribly alive here, and it can turn terribly deadly, again and again, every day.

When representatives from around the world convened in the Iranian capital of Tehran last Thursday for the start of a Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement, an annual meeting of 120 nations that view themselves as not aligned for or against any major powers, the focus was suddenly on 1,300-year-old battles, murders and power struggles. The host was Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a Shiite. Next to him on the dais was Egypt's new president, Mohammed Morsi, a Sunni.

Morsi began his opening address with a mention of the Prophet Muhammad, but then continued: "May Allah's blessing be upon our masters Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali."

Iranian media immediately took the statement as a provocation. Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman were Muhammad's successors after the Prophet's death in 632. Sunni Muslims venerate them as the first caliphs -- but Shiite Muslims consider them usurpers and traitors to the faith, hated figures whose very names should not be spoken. Muhammad's true successor, Shiites say, was Ali, their first imam, who later fought against the other three before being murdered. » | Christoph Reuter | Thursday, September 06, 2012