'How Might Saudi Arabia Retaliate Against Iran For Alleged Plot?'

from rferl........


"Iran's alleged plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to the United States -- on U.S. soil -- brought swift vows of revenge from Riyadh.

In the days after the alleged plot was revealed by U.S. authorities, Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal accused Tehran of "murder and mayhem" and said his country would deliver a "measured response" to the plot.

"We hold them [Iran] accountable for any action they take against us," he said during a trip to Vienna. "And this is not the first time Iran has been suspected of similar acts."


So what might Saudi Arabia do -- especially given the continued rippling effects of the Arab Spring across the Middle East?

Proxy War

Saudi Arabia could opt for a more traditional method of retaliation by backing ethnic-minority dissidents and oppressed Sunnis in Iran in an effort to undermine the domestic security of the country and exert pressure on the clerical regime. It could also lend support to militant Sunnis in Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria with the hope of weakening Shi'ite-led Iran's influence in the region"..............READ MORE