Friday 06 March 2015

Iran ‘taking over’ Iraq, Saudis warn

Saudi Arabia became the second key American ally in the Middle East to demand U.S. President Barack Obama change tack towards Iran Thursday, as it called for U.S.-led coalition “boots on the ground” to fight the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham.

At a meeting in Riyadh, Prince Saud al-Faisal, the Saudi foreign minister, told John Kerry, the U.S. secretary of state, he risked allowing Iran to “take over Iraq,” echoing Israel’s recent concerns over the White House’s policy toward Tehran.

The United States and its coalition allies are attacking ISIS positions from the air in both Syria and Iraq, but refusing to send troops. As a result, outside Kurdish areas, the offensive in both countries is heavily influenced by Iran and its proxy Shiite militias, such as Hezbollah.

This has raised serious concerns in Saudi Arabia, Iran’s Sunni rival for Middle East dominance.

The Iraqi government is laying siege to ISIS positions in Tikrit, Saddam Hussein’s home city north of Baghdad. But most of its forces are under the command of government-aligned Shiite militias, whose leaders are close to the Iranian regime, even though the population of Tikrit is largely Sunni.

http://news.nationalpost.com/2015/03/05/iran-taking-over-iraq-saudis-warn-blaming-u-s-refusal-to-send-troops-against-isis/




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