alternatehistory.com
Asia: Saudi Arabia
Every world has its North Korea...
Saudi Arabia was founded out of the ashes of the Ottoman Civil War (1919-1924). The kingdom had been a player in Ottoman affairs for a while, however it made its resurgence during the conflict that set the Middle East ablaze. However, they found themselves in a an akward spot, as no European powers supported the newly formed Kingdom. Indeed, taking the Ottoman threat as a pretense, the Saudis and the Ikhwan, the most loyal Saudi soldiers, invaded the northern provinces of Yemen, and the Emirate of Ha'il. The Saudis contributed very little to the Civil War directly, and instead tried to take control of as much of the Arabian peninsula as possible, even supporting the Ottomans in some operations. However, this would come back to haunt them, as the British landed an Egyptian-led force to take the Holy Cities, Mecca and Medinah, and soon transferred them to the newly formed Emirate of Hejaz. Similarly, the British-led forces in Jordan also captured vast swathes of territory the Saudis couldn't get their hands on. The Saudis did however manage to take a port on the Red Sea, at Jizan.
Desiring to take Hejaz, but not willing to anger the British, Ibn Saud, the new king of Arabia, decided to meet with the head of the Ikhwan, Al-Otaibi. The Ikhwan would be officially disbanded, but unofficially, allowed to operate from Saudi Arabia to conduct raids on neighbouring countries such as Yemen, Hejaz and Jordan. The disbanding of the Ikhwan as a military force is now commonly known as the founding of the first ever Islamic Terrorist organization, that would continue to operate until very recently within the boundaries of the Kingdom.
The raids continued for a long time, with Saudi Arabia never taking responsibility for the actions, and doing very little to stop the Ikhwan, even executing random criminals and painting them as the terrorists raiding Hejaz. However, Hejaz did not take this kindly, and when a raid on a military installation ar Ranyah killed 12 Hejazi soldiers, the Hejazi government stepped in and invaded the Kingdom. The short lived Arabian war resulted in the Treaty of Jeddah in 1933, with Saudi Arabia conceding all ports on the Red Sea, and forced to demilitarize all of their border with the Emirate. This ended the Ikhwan as a fighting force, who instead conducted sabotage operations from then on.
Neutral during the World War, Arabia tried to take over the British protectorates, but were beaten back by the better equipped Persians, who guaranteed the independence of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the U.A.E. The United States also put bases in the area in order to contain the Saudi threat, as the Ikhwan had restarted to emerge, collaborating with the PLO in orchestrating terrorist attacks in Europe, America and Israel.
However, Mondale's election in 1981 re-shuffled the cards in the Middle East. U.S presence was greatly reduced, and the Saudis started a nuclear program. This was discovered soon enough, and pressured by the EDF, the Saudi government was forced to shut it down. However, an estimated 7 nuclear devices had aready been produced and put into the hands of the Ikhwan. Several times have these weapons tried to be smuggled out of the country, with two warheads being seized, one in the Persian Gulf attempting to leave Dammam and one in Irak, disguised as a cargo of wood. This led U.S. president James Baker to come with the Saudi Ultimatum in 1995, whereas if a nuke was discovered out of Saudi Arabia, then the Saudis would cease to exist as a country.
The threat stuck, and no further attempt to smuggle the remaining 5 nuclear devices, who remain under U.S surveillance 24/7, have been attempted. This did not dissuade the Ikhwan from trying new ways of exporting their Islamic terrorism, with bombings continuing over the next 10 years, but it all came to a stop on April 4th, 2000 with the Millenium Attacks (see next post, on Wednesday). The attacks had a profound impact on the World, and while the U.S government led by Al Gore refused to take action, the EDF's retribution was swift. Using several aircraft launched from the HMAS Renown and the Clemenceau, Riyadh was bombed on the evening of April 23rd, and the leader of the Ikhwan, Osama bin Laden, killed during a similar airstrike in Buraydah.
The Saudis got the message and immediately cut funding for the Ikhwan, whose presence has dramatically decreased. However, the Saudis still sponsor them although they are not allowed to operate on Saudi soil. The U.S. nonetheless reinforced their bases in the region with the election in 2001 of Elizabeth Dole to the presidency, and still enforce a ban on all Saudi goods to this day. Saudi Arabia still trades with other nations, notably China and India, due to their massive oil reserves in the Dammam area, and despite having a full on Western embargo forced on them, still manage to subsist as a country. However, human rights are almost nonexistent, as the country is a secular, Islamic Republic where women have little to no rights and where Sharia law is in full effect.
Saudi Arabia was founded out of the ashes of the Ottoman Civil War (1919-1924). The kingdom had been a player in Ottoman affairs for a while, however it made its resurgence during the conflict that set the Middle East ablaze. However, they found themselves in a an akward spot, as no European powers supported the newly formed Kingdom. Indeed, taking the Ottoman threat as a pretense, the Saudis and the Ikhwan, the most loyal Saudi soldiers, invaded the northern provinces of Yemen, and the Emirate of Ha'il. The Saudis contributed very little to the Civil War directly, and instead tried to take control of as much of the Arabian peninsula as possible, even supporting the Ottomans in some operations. However, this would come back to haunt them, as the British landed an Egyptian-led force to take the Holy Cities, Mecca and Medinah, and soon transferred them to the newly formed Emirate of Hejaz. Similarly, the British-led forces in Jordan also captured vast swathes of territory the Saudis couldn't get their hands on. The Saudis did however manage to take a port on the Red Sea, at Jizan.
Desiring to take Hejaz, but not willing to anger the British, Ibn Saud, the new king of Arabia, decided to meet with the head of the Ikhwan, Al-Otaibi. The Ikhwan would be officially disbanded, but unofficially, allowed to operate from Saudi Arabia to conduct raids on neighbouring countries such as Yemen, Hejaz and Jordan. The disbanding of the Ikhwan as a military force is now commonly known as the founding of the first ever Islamic Terrorist organization, that would continue to operate until very recently within the boundaries of the Kingdom.
The raids continued for a long time, with Saudi Arabia never taking responsibility for the actions, and doing very little to stop the Ikhwan, even executing random criminals and painting them as the terrorists raiding Hejaz. However, Hejaz did not take this kindly, and when a raid on a military installation ar Ranyah killed 12 Hejazi soldiers, the Hejazi government stepped in and invaded the Kingdom. The short lived Arabian war resulted in the Treaty of Jeddah in 1933, with Saudi Arabia conceding all ports on the Red Sea, and forced to demilitarize all of their border with the Emirate. This ended the Ikhwan as a fighting force, who instead conducted sabotage operations from then on.
Neutral during the World War, Arabia tried to take over the British protectorates, but were beaten back by the better equipped Persians, who guaranteed the independence of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the U.A.E. The United States also put bases in the area in order to contain the Saudi threat, as the Ikhwan had restarted to emerge, collaborating with the PLO in orchestrating terrorist attacks in Europe, America and Israel.
However, Mondale's election in 1981 re-shuffled the cards in the Middle East. U.S presence was greatly reduced, and the Saudis started a nuclear program. This was discovered soon enough, and pressured by the EDF, the Saudi government was forced to shut it down. However, an estimated 7 nuclear devices had aready been produced and put into the hands of the Ikhwan. Several times have these weapons tried to be smuggled out of the country, with two warheads being seized, one in the Persian Gulf attempting to leave Dammam and one in Irak, disguised as a cargo of wood. This led U.S. president James Baker to come with the Saudi Ultimatum in 1995, whereas if a nuke was discovered out of Saudi Arabia, then the Saudis would cease to exist as a country.
The threat stuck, and no further attempt to smuggle the remaining 5 nuclear devices, who remain under U.S surveillance 24/7, have been attempted. This did not dissuade the Ikhwan from trying new ways of exporting their Islamic terrorism, with bombings continuing over the next 10 years, but it all came to a stop on April 4th, 2000 with the Millenium Attacks (see next post, on Wednesday). The attacks had a profound impact on the World, and while the U.S government led by Al Gore refused to take action, the EDF's retribution was swift. Using several aircraft launched from the HMAS Renown and the Clemenceau, Riyadh was bombed on the evening of April 23rd, and the leader of the Ikhwan, Osama bin Laden, killed during a similar airstrike in Buraydah.
The Saudis got the message and immediately cut funding for the Ikhwan, whose presence has dramatically decreased. However, the Saudis still sponsor them although they are not allowed to operate on Saudi soil. The U.S. nonetheless reinforced their bases in the region with the election in 2001 of Elizabeth Dole to the presidency, and still enforce a ban on all Saudi goods to this day. Saudi Arabia still trades with other nations, notably China and India, due to their massive oil reserves in the Dammam area, and despite having a full on Western embargo forced on them, still manage to subsist as a country. However, human rights are almost nonexistent, as the country is a secular, Islamic Republic where women have little to no rights and where Sharia law is in full effect.
- Wings
- Word Count: 880