Saudi special forces march in a military parade in 2009.
Just days after the British government pledged $181 million in grants and loans to foster economically viable democratic transitions in Egypt and Tunisia, a disclosure made under the U.K. Freedom of Information Act confirmed that British military personnel are training the same Saudi security forces that were used to crush recent popular uprisings in Bahrain.
Speaking on the G-8 summit’s opening day last Thursday, British Prime Minister David Cameron offered lip service to those demanding freedom and democracy in countries throughout the Middle East and North Africa, saying: “ ... We are on your side. ... We’ll help you build your democracies; we’ll help you build your economies; we’ll help you with trade; we’ll help you in all the ways that we can, because the alternative to successful democracies is more of the poisonous extremism that has done so much damage in our world.” —ARK
Guardian:
Britain is training Saudi Arabia’s national guard—the elite security force deployed during the recent protests in Bahrain—in public order enforcement measures and the use of sniper rifles. The revelation has outraged human rights groups, which point out that the Foreign Office recognises that the kingdom’s human rights record is “a major concern”.
In response to questions made under the Freedom of Information Act, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed that British personnel regularly run courses for the national guard in “weapons, fieldcraft and general military skills training, as well as incident handling, bomb disposal, search, public order and sniper training”. The courses are organised through the British Military Mission to the Saudi Arabian National Guard, an obscure unit that consists of 11 British army personnel under the command of a brigadier.
... The MoD’s response was made in 2006, but when questioned this week it confirmed Britain has been providing training for the Saudi national guard to improve their “internal security and counter-terrorism” capabilities since 1964 and continues to do so. Members of the guard, which was established by the kingdom’s royal family because it feared its regular army would not support it in the event of a popular uprising, are also provided places on flagship UK military courses at Sandhurst and Dartmouth. In Saudi Arabia, Britain continues to train the guard in “urban sharpshooter” programmes, the MoD confirmed.
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Yes, and in the interests of peace on earth, goodwill toward men (even evil men) they are using “bunker-busters” on Godawful’s compound today—in memorium, I suppose. We win, you lose—unless you’ve got something bigger. It’s all so totally testeronically unnecessary—could have been prevented, could have been predicted, could have been pre-empted, could have been avoided before it got a headstart.
People smart enough to invent and manufacture
“bunker-busters” and UAVs are smart enough to learn to use non-violent alternatives to violence. It’s a question of heads full of nightmarish scenarios.
There might even be some money in nonviolent alternatives—if the goal becomes replacing war with peace as a permanent part of human history. Just because Attilla the Hun did it, doesn’t mean it’s our only recourse.
By hafed, May 29, 2011 at 11:43 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
Nothing could testify to the fact that Western intervention in the M.E.was morally guided by the interest of the people.Most torture equipments used by ME tyrents are made and sold by the Western demoncratic powers.I guess its time for the west, to drop their mask and reveal their true identity!!
From the June issue of Harper’s magazine: Estimated
value of arms sent by NATO countries to Muammar
Qaddafi since 1969: $10,000,000,000. What year did
Qaddafi bring down that passenger plane over
Scotland? And, by the way: Minimum amount Qaddafi
held in US banks at the time his assets were frozen
in February: $29,700,000,000.
So, whether we’re training soldiers to fight the
beleaguered people in the streets of the ME or
crossing verbal swords with the likes of Qaddafi,
what we’re really doing is creating/supporting
permanent aristocracies in our own countries.
A Cooler Century? Wait and See
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By gerard, May 29, 2011 at 2:56 pm Link to this comment
Yes, and in the interests of peace on earth, goodwill toward men (even evil men) they are using “bunker-busters” on Godawful’s compound today—in memorium, I suppose. We win, you lose—unless you’ve got something bigger. It’s all so totally testeronically unnecessary—could have been prevented, could have been predicted, could have been pre-empted, could have been avoided before it got a headstart.
People smart enough to invent and manufacture
“bunker-busters” and UAVs are smart enough to learn to use non-violent alternatives to violence. It’s a question of heads full of nightmarish scenarios.
There might even be some money in nonviolent alternatives—if the goal becomes replacing war with peace as a permanent part of human history. Just because Attilla the Hun did it, doesn’t mean it’s our only recourse.
Report thisBy hafed, May 29, 2011 at 11:43 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)
Nothing could testify to the fact that Western intervention in the M.E.was morally guided by the interest of the people.Most torture equipments used by ME tyrents are made and sold by the Western demoncratic powers.I guess its time for the west, to drop their mask and reveal their true identity!!
Report thisBy felicity, May 29, 2011 at 11:08 am Link to this comment
From the June issue of Harper’s magazine: Estimated
value of arms sent by NATO countries to Muammar
Qaddafi since 1969: $10,000,000,000. What year did
Qaddafi bring down that passenger plane over
Scotland? And, by the way: Minimum amount Qaddafi
held in US banks at the time his assets were frozen
in February: $29,700,000,000.
So, whether we’re training soldiers to fight the
Report thisbeleaguered people in the streets of the ME or
crossing verbal swords with the likes of Qaddafi,
what we’re really doing is creating/supporting
permanent aristocracies in our own countries.