King Bandar of Saudi Arabia
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King Bandar of Saudi Arabia

Is it cowardice or ignorance that lies behind the rule of Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia -- the man effectively in charge of the oil and petrodollar "Kingdom" at this crucial historic time?

It's some of both actually. Cowardice because year after year, issue after issue, Abdullah always refuses to follow through on his well-known and often stated convictions. True Abdullah sometimes articulates himself well, in private that is, and true he even begins to take steps to regain dignity and independence for "the Kingdom", as the expose this week in The Washington Post points out; but then he always backs off and never really follows through. Ignorance because just as King Fahd before him -- now essentially non-functional with more than two dozen mostly foreign physicians managing to keep him alive -- the de facto Saudi King has allowed the Kingdom's Playboy Ambassador in Washington to continue to manipulate crucial affairs in tandem with the Americans and the Israelis.

Doing just that was what took place on matters of greatest historical importance back in 1990 when the Ambassador -- Bandar bin Sultan (son of the Defense Minister who is half-brother to Abdullah -- accompanied then Secretary of Defense Richard Cheney (now the VIP) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Colin Powell (now the Secretary of State) to Riyadh where deceptive information was purposefully presented to the Saudi Royals who were then informed the American Army was already on its way.

Much the same took place early in the second Bush Presidency last year when it was Bandar, again cavorting with the same Washington team, once more mislead the Saudi Royals about what the Americans, and what their real ally Israelis, are really up to -- this after Abdullah tried to take serious steps to finally make it evident that the time had finally come for the Saudis to stop taking their orders from the Americans.

Once you leave "the Kingdom" itself and travel to the seat of power here in Washington it is Prince Bandar who has built around himself a network of well-paid advisers, public relations firms, intelligence types, "client organizations", and political operatives which all combined give him more power and influence than Abdullah. He's been at it in Washington, and to a lesser degree in Europe, for more than twenty years now; often doing things that if they ever became publicly known would be quite scandalous -- both politically and personally.

Furthermore, just as the Americans schemed to replace King Hussein in Amman with their man (another Abdullah in this case) rather than allow the long-in-waiting Crown Prince to take power, something similar but much more convoluted is afoot regarding the far more important country of Saudi Arabia.

How long Fahd will remain alive is unknown of course. And whether half-brother Sultan, now the Defense Minister and Bandar's father (his mother was a servant woman) will ever be King after Abdullah is also unknown. What is happening however, no matter how much denied, is that Bandar has positioned himself with the Americans (and with the Israelis too for that matter with whom he has purposefully developed close personal behind-the-scenes dealings) so that if his father ever becomes King he can attempt to position himself to follow Sultan when the current Royal generation is no more. And if Sultan never does makes it to the throne and a power struggle breaks out for any reason, Bandar knows he has the support and resources of the American Empire at his disposal as does no one else.

Bandar has already has a major influence in many quarters through his money-peddling schemes, including his control of various well-known organizations and personalities. But most of all it is Bandar's dealings with the Americans and with the Israelis that have given him such extraordinary power; and through which he has essentially become at crucial times their agent delegated to deal with the Saudi Royal family and make sure the oil and money and strategic capabilities of Saudi Arabia are used largely for U.S. purposes. More than any other Arab it was Bandar who helped bring about the Gulf War, the destruction of Iraq, and then the disastrous apartheid-like "Peace Process" which he personally helped engineer.

Bandar should have been "recalled" and "reassigned" long ago; but the betting remains that Abdullah, like Fahd before him, has neither the courage nor the knowledge, and probably not even the power, to do so.

The Washington Post series of articles this week should be read and pondered. But even with all three lengthy parts and extras, what the Post reports is hardly the complete story...not by far. There's very little detail about the hundreds of billions used to build up the huge military infrastructure in "the Kingdom" primarily for use by the Americans...started long before the Gulf War. There's hardly anything about the close under-the-table relationship between the Saudis and the Israelis over the years, designed by Bandar primarily to try to safeguard the Saudi relationship with the US, especially with the Congress and the media -- an approach now in disastrous shambles. And there is a great deal of unreported looking the other way, "protection" if you will, when it comes to the largely hidden but extremely important role Bandar has tried to play in the affairs of Washington in so many political, media, and economic ways -- primarily of course by using the enticement of money to grease his way.

Nearly everything Bandar has attempted is however now in crisis, or already destroyed, with the very future of Saudi rule of Arabia more in doubt than ever before and a tremendous legacy of loathing and hatred which the Playboy Ambassador and his constant excesses has helped generate.

It was Bandar as well who had such a great influence in bringing about the serious political and strategic mistakes that in turn brought about the conditions that lead to the phenomena of Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaida; but here too not much insight about these crucial developments that have now changed our world forever from the Post articles.

But even so, there are in this series many insights and first time public revelations important to know and understanding in this historically unique relationship between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia; a relationship which has had such tremendously negative implications in so many ways for the people of the region from Algeria to Egypt, from Iraq to Iran, from Lebanon to Palestine. For it is in fact this U.S.-Saudi connection that has so benefited the U.S. over the years and in the end so harmed the people of the region -- except for the now shaking Royals who have siphoned away such grand fortunes into foreign banks...money which today represents the resources that really belonged all along to the Arab peoples and certainly not to much despised Playboy Ambassadors like Bandar bin Sultan. Is it cowardice or ignorance that lies behind the rule of Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia -- the man effectively in charge of the oil and petrodollar "Kingdom" at this crucial historic time?

It's some of both actually. Cowardice because year after year, issue after issue, Abdullah always refuses to follow through on his well-known and often stated convictions. True Abdullah sometimes articulates himself well, in private that is, and true he even begins to take steps to regain dignity and independence for "the Kingdom", as the expose this week in The Washington Post points out; but then he always backs off and never really follows through. Ignorance because just as King Fahd before him -- now essentially non-functional with more than two dozen mostly foreign physicians managing to keep him alive -- the de facto Saudi King has allowed the Kingdom's Playboy Ambassador in Washington to continue to manipulate crucial affairs in tandem with the Americans and the Israelis.

Doing just that was what took place on matters of greatest historical importance back in 1990 when the Ambassador -- Bandar bin Sultan (son of the Defense Minister who is half-brother to Abdullah -- accompanied then Secretary of Defense Richard Cheney (now the VIP) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Colin Powell (now the Secretary of State) to Riyadh where deceptive information was purposefully presented to the Saudi Royals who were then informed the American Army was already on its way.

Much the same took place early in the second Bush Presidency last year when it was Bandar, again cavorting with the same Washington team, once more mislead the Saudi Royals about what the Americans, and what their real ally Israelis, are really up to -- this after Abdullah tried to take serious steps to finally make it evident that the time had finally come for the Saudis to stop taking their orders from the Americans.

Once you leave "the Kingdom" itself and travel to the seat of power here in Washington it is Prince Bandar who has built around himself a network of well-paid advisers, public relations firms, intelligence types, "client organizations", and political operatives which all combined give him more power and influence than Abdullah. He's been at it in Washington, and to a lesser degree in Europe, for more than twenty years now; often doing things that if they ever became publicly known would be quite scandalous -- both politically and personally.

Furthermore, just as the Americans schemed to replace King Hussein in Amman with their man (another Abdullah in this case) rather than allow the long-in-waiting Crown Prince to take power, something similar but much more convoluted is afoot regarding the far more important country of Saudi Arabia.

How long Fahd will remain alive is unknown of course. And whether half-brother Sultan, now the Defense Minister and Bandar's father (his mother was a servant woman) will ever be King after Abdullah is also unknown. What is happening however, no matter how much denied, is that Bandar has positioned himself with the Americans (and with the Israelis too for that matter with whom he has purposefully developed close personal behind-the-scenes dealings) so that if his father ever becomes King he can attempt to position himself to follow Sultan when the current Royal generation is no more. And if Sultan never does makes it to the throne and a power struggle breaks out for any reason, Bandar knows he has the support and resources of the American Empire at his disposal as does no one else.

Bandar has already has a major influence in many quarters through his money-peddling schemes, including his control of various well-known organizations and personalities. But most of all it is Bandar's dealings with the Americans and with the Israelis that have given him such extraordinary power; and through which he has essentially become at crucial times their agent delegated to deal with the Saudi Royal family and make sure the oil and money and strategic capabilities of Saudi Arabia are used largely for U.S. purposes. More than any other Arab it was Bandar who helped bring about the Gulf War, the destruction of Iraq, and then the disastrous apartheid-like "Peace Process" which he personally helped engineer.

Bandar should have been "recalled" and "reassigned" long ago; but the betting remains that Abdullah, like Fahd before him, has neither the courage nor the knowledge, and probably not even the power, to do so.

The Washington Post series of articles this week should be read and pondered. But even with all three lengthy parts and extras, what the Post reports is hardly the complete story...not by far. There's very little detail about the hundreds of billions used to build up the huge military infrastructure in "the Kingdom" primarily for use by the Americans...started long before the Gulf War. There's hardly anything about the close under-the-table relationship between the Saudis and the Israelis over the years, designed by Bandar primarily to try to safeguard the Saudi relationship with the US, especially with the Congress and the media -- an approach now in disastrous shambles. And there is a great deal of unreported looking the other way, "protection" if you will, when it comes to the largely hidden but extremely important role Bandar has tried to play in the affairs of Washington in so many political, media, and economic ways -- primarily of course by using the enticement of money to grease his way.

Nearly everything Bandar has attempted is however now in crisis, or already destroyed, with the very future of Saudi rule of Arabia more in doubt than ever before and a tremendous legacy of loathing and hatred which the Playboy Ambassador and his constant excesses has helped generate.

It was Bandar as well who had such a great influence in bringing about the serious political and strategic mistakes that in turn brought about the conditions that lead to the phenomena of Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaida; but here too not much insight about these crucial developments that have now changed our world forever from the Post articles.

But even so, there are in this series many insights and first time public revelations important to know and understanding in this historically unique relationship between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia; a relationship which has had such tremendously negative implications in so many ways for the people of the region from Algeria to Egypt, from Iraq to Iran, from Lebanon to Palestine. For it is in fact this U.S.-Saudi connection that has so benefited the U.S. over the years and in the end so harmed the people of the region -- except for the now shaking Royals who have siphoned away such grand fortunes into foreign banks...money which today represents the resources that really belonged all along to the Arab peoples and certainly not to much despised Playboy Ambassadors like Bandar bin Sultan.



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February 2002


Magazine



ISRAELI WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION
(February 28, 2002)
The proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, precisely what the U.S. now insists is the main reason for its expansion of its "war on terrorism" far beyond the what happened and who did it of 9/11, didn't begin with the Arab and Muslim countries, it actually began with American's main ally, Israel.

Thousands of Israeli Soldiers Attack Refugee Camps
(February 28, 2002)
Under cover of diplomatic deception the Israelis, and the Americans, are preparing the way not for a Middle East peace, but rather for a major Middle East war that will attempt to recast the politics and alliances of the region for some time to come.

Israel Further Defies U.N. and Arab League
(February 28, 2002)
More Palestinians have died and been shot in the past weeks than in any other comparable period since the major wars in 1948 and 1967. Adjusted for the size of the U.S. population, about 100,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israelis, with continual American assistance, just since Intifada II began!

Disappeared...in the Land of the Free
(February 27, 2002)
Since 11 September last year, up to 2,000 people in the U.S. have been detained without trial, or charge, or even legal rights. The fate of most is unknown. Andrew Gumbel investigates a scandal that shames the land of the free.

"Terrorism" For All Seasons and Reasons
(February 27, 2002)
While U.S. Attorney John Ashcroft is busy draping the statue of the Spirit of Justice, and while the White House is busy making excuses for getting rid of the Israeli-centric speechwriter, David Frum, the USG is using the "terrorism excuse" not only to get ready for "regime change" in Iraq but to keep "undesireables" from even speaking up through all kinds of new intimidation and repression techniques.

Diplomatic Deceptions Amidst War and Plunder Plans
(February 26, 2002)
There are so many things going on these days it's not easy to put all the pieces together. But among the things that should be causing people truly concerned about a just and viable Middle East much pause is this: ...

The Real George Bush Junior
(February 25, 2002)
The Bush White House is a little spooked, not quite sure what the public will make of all this For this "wholesome" President who has brought "dignity back to the White House", this video documentary about to debut could be the near-equivalent to Bill Clinton's public denials -- and all those senior officials he enlisted on his behalf -- followed by Monica Lewinsky's now-infamous semen-stained little "blue dress".

Blair and Bush to Plot War on Iraq at White House Summit
(February 25, 2002)
After Vice-President Cheney -- former Pentagon chief and former oil company executive -- makes an unprecedented visit to a dozen countries in the Middle East and central Asia that surround Iraq or that will be involved in one way or another in the coming "regime change" war, British PM Tony Blair and Pres George Bush II will hold a war council at the White House.

Pearl Was Israeli
(February 23, 2002)
We now learn that Daniel Pearl, the kidnapped and killed Wall Street Journal reporter, was an Israeli citizen. What more may we learn next?

Sharon Up Against The Wall - Time of Greatest Danger
(February 23, 2002)
Bulls and Tyrants are most dangerous when wounded. And this is now the case with Ariel Sharon and the powerful Israeli military/intelligence/occupation authorities he now commands.

Uncle Sam, Uncle Tom, and Uncle Ben
(February 22, 2002)
We all know who Uncle Sam is. And there are many who think of Colin Powell as Uncle Tom, thought admittedly he usually plays his role so well in public. The Israelis and Sharon have Shimon Peres. And the Americans and Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld have Colin Powell. But...Uncle Ben?

Israelis Proceed With Long-Term Plans
(February 22, 2002)
The current Israeli Prime Minister probably had plans to do just what he is now doing long ago. Since become PM he's just been manuevering to get things in place to do so. Even at the Wye River talks after he became Israeli Foreign Minister Sharon refused to even shake Yasser Arafat's hand.

Palestinians Under Occupation Fight Bravely While Those in Exile Fail Miserably
(February 21, 2002)
As courageous and in some ways remarkable as the Palestinian struggle is against an occupation army with high-tech weapons supplied by the world's only superpower, the Palestinians now face a potentially even more catastrophic fate.

"Where Is The World?" "A Future Not Worth Living"
(February 20, 2002)
The following eye-witness news comes from Dr. Mona El-Farra of the Union of Health Work Committees in Gaza.

More Strikes Ahead; Or More Justification For the New Crusades?
(February 20, 2002)
In a predawn raid Wednesday, Israeli army F-16 warplanes, Apache helicopters and naval boats attacked Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's beachside Gaza City headquarters, killing at least five Palestinians and wounding 10, Palestinian witnesses said.

The New Pentagon "Office of Strategic Influence" - Media Missiles Ahead
(February 19, 2002)
The big "defense" and "entertainment" corporations have bought up the major American media in the past few decades. Now the Pentagon and the State Department are diversifying into the news business in order to still further manipulate the foreign media and international public opinion.

Modern-Day Saudi Arabia - Crimes, Lashes, and Cover-ups
(February 18, 2002)
It's not a crime in Saudi Arabia to stash away hundreds of millions in totally unearned kick-back commissions in secret foreign bank accounts -- oops it's actually billions now with the total of all "Royal" foreign accounts now estimated to be approaching a trillion!

U.S. Truly Becoming the Star Wars Empire
(February 18, 2002)
The American President is in Asia, touring one past and potential future battlefield in Korea. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs is in India touring another. And the Vice-President is preparing for an unprecedented trip that will take him, along with senior military and CIA operatives, to nearly a dozen countries that just happen to surround Iraq.

Saudis To Propose Deal With Israel
(February 17, 2002)
are many ways to do things; and the Saudis have specialized in doing things in the wrong ways for the wrong reasons for a very long time now.

King Bandar of Saudi Arabia
(February 17, 2002)
Is it cowardice or ignorance that lies behind the rule of Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia -- the man effectively in charge of the oil and petrodollar "Kingdom" at this crucial historic time?

To Damn or to Applaud "Speaker Burg"
(February 15, 2002)
The very notion these days of simply "trusting" anyone associated with the Israeli political establishment or more specifically in this case Israel's Labor Party is pretty difficult -- there's such a long history of deceit and mistrust, and such good reasons.

WAR! U.S. and Israel Will Take On Both Iraq and Iran
(February 14, 2002)
Flushed with their "victory" against the primitive Muslim "Taliban" (students) of Afghanistan, the new name of the game for the new Washington -- run more than ever now by the oil companies, the Pentagon/CIA, and the military-industrial-banking complex -- is "regime change".

Arafat Screams "Israeli spy! CIA agent!" at Rajoub
(February 13, 2002)
Jibril Rajoub is not just an "Arafat aide". He's actually the main guy in charge of the West Bank for the "Palestinian Authority", groomed for some time now by both the Americans and the Israelis to possibly take over for Arafat and to help force his people into submission with his thuggish bruttish ways.

Musharraf Panders; Arafat Crippled
(February 13, 2002)
You'd have to be really crazy to buy a used car from Shimon Peres, or even to take it for free as in all likelihood the expensive repairs it would require would be more than it was worth. The idea of buying Peres' warmed over doubly-castrated "peace plan" and "Palestinian State" is even more foolish.

Arafat Slaps and Whips Out His Gun
(February 13, 2002)
The new Intifada, and then the events of 911, have spawned a variety of new press and Internet outlets of various kinds. The aim of many is to try to maintain some control of the information flow to certain constituencies, to "spin" the news in the direction of their sponsors, and to push their own analysts and "experts" onto radio and TV programs.

TV Arabs: Fouad, James, and Clovis - MER FlashBack
(February 12, 2002)
Why have things gotten so depressingly miserable when it comes to mass media coverage of the Middle East, especially in the United States? There is no single answer, no magic bullet solution. The answer is quite complex and multi-faceted in fact.

Kashmir - More Killed and Tortured than in Palestine
(February 12, 2002)
Just like in the once Holy Land, the politically cancerous situation in Kashmir has been left unresolved by the international community and has now become dangerously life-threatening.

911 Was Really 'Massive Blown Back'
(February 11, 2002)
"The course that Sharon, Bush and his British cheerleader, Tony Blair seem set upon will probably in the long run destabilize the Arab moderates, to the delight of the reactionary regimes in Syria, Iraq and Iran and the only true beneficiaries will once again be the extremists and the terrorists."

Standing Ovation for Mark Bruzonsky at University of Chicago
(February 9, 2002)
In Chicago the evening of 31 January 2002 Mark Bruzonsky, Publisher of MER, gave the keynote address at the University of Chicago Model United Nations. For the first time in the history of the keynote talks at this annual event the speaker received a prolonged standing ovation.

Jordanian King Takes Desperate Gamble To Retain Power
(February 8, 2002)
Trying to save the final Hashemite throne, the Royal regime in Jordan has decided to get even more in bed with the U.S. and Israel than ever before. It may work and the final Hashemite regime in power after enthronment by the British and the CIA in the last century may survive for the time being.

Washington Scene - Arab and Muslim "Client Orgs" Totally Lacking in Credibility
(February 8, 2002)
Ariel Sharon is on his fourth visit to Washington since both he and George Bush II took power. It is a War Council, coming at a time of unprecedented danger (Sharon clearly sees opportunity), coming at a time when he finally has Yasser Arafat, now the titular figurehead of the Palestinian people, under a newfangled form of town arrest in Ramallah with tanks pointing in his direction just a stone throw away.

"Transfer" the Palestinians Say Many Israelis
(February 7, 2002)
The Moledet party's media blitz for the mass expulsion of Palestinians is gaining momentum.

Triumphant Sharon
(February 7, 2002)
Ariel Sharon has arrived in Washington triumphant as many never believed could or would happen in their worst political nightmares. He may well be the single man who has had more influence on the Arab-Israeli conflict, and on the history of the entire region, than any other.

King Prostrates Jordan for More U.S. Money and "Support"
(February 6, 2002)
King Abdullah II, born of a British mother, Anglo-American educated including at the Jesuit Center of Georgetown University, and essentially enthroned with the help of the CIA (aided by Princeton grad daughter of the former head of Pan American Airlines, Lisa Halaby, reincarnated as Queen Noor), has been ever so helpful to the Americans as now since he was enthrowed as the former long-time Crown Prince was overthrown.

"I ACCUSE"
(February 6, 2002)


Lie To Them And They Will Come
(February 5, 2002)
For the holidaymaker in search of a sun-soaked Mediterranean beach away from the crowds, Gush Katif sounds ideal. Or so thinks Israel's hardline tourism minister, Binyamin Elon.

Killing and Refusing
(February 5, 2002)
There is a great deal of moral twisting and turning and cover-up going on among the Israelis; and oh so necessary however late in the day. This article in today's Ha'aretz gives the impression that torturing and shooting to death many Palestinians in cold-blood is something new or rare.

King Bandar of Arabia
(February 16, 2002)


Israel sets up Iran as next target for the US
(February 8, 2002)


"Americans Can Be A BloodThirsty Lot"
(February 4, 2002)





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