2. A very interesting article from Deutsche Welle, about the consequences of
the Saudi-Iranian rivalry in Africa. Deutsche Welle is the German state-run
news agency. I must also say that it has great newsletters, classified by
geographic region. For example you receive Deutsche Welle Germany,
Deutsche Well Asia, Deutsche Welle Africa etc. If you want to subscribe go
at the bottom of the home page http://www.dw.com/en/top-stories/s-9097
and choose “Newsletter % Co”.
The article says that after the crisis in the Saudi-Iranian relations in January
2016, Sudan, an Iranian ally until recently, asked the Iranian diplomats to
leave the country within two weeks. Somalia and Djibouti officially
supported Saudi Arabia too. According to Deutsche Welle the Saudis have
promised Sudan and Somalia to construct large dams in order to promote
agriculture and also the production of hydroelectric energy.
I must also say that Egypt, Sudan, Somalia, and Djibouti are countries of
high strategic importance for the control of the Red Sea. At the other side of
the Red Sea there is a civil war in Yemen, with the Saudis backing the
Yemen government, and the Iranians backing the Houthi rebels.
Map 1 Red Sea
3. The above information does not mean that the Iranians do not have influence
in these countries. In all these countries there are many terrorist
organizations and Iran is one of the main backers of international terrorism,
together with the Saudis and the Turks. The United Nations accused Iran of
supplying the terrorists of Somalia with arms, something that the Iranians
denied. See Reuters “Iran denies shipping arms to Islamist militants in
Somalia”, February 2013.
Note that ISIS and Al Qaeda are fighting for the eyes of the largest terrorist
organization of Somalia i.e. Al-Shabbab. See Telegraph “How al-Qaeda and
Islamic State are fighting for al-Shabaab affections in Somalia”, November
2015. Al-Shabaab (Somalia) and Boko Haram (Nigeria) are the two largest
terrorist organizations of Africa. In 2015 Boko Haram declared her alliance
with ISIS.
4. ISIS is the largest terrorist organization in the world, because it has moved
beyond the traditional limits of terrorism, and it basically represents the
Sunni parts of Syria and Iraq, it has its own oil fields, and that’s why ISIS
wants to have a country too i.e. the Sunni parts of Syria and Iraq. Before the
rise of ISIS the largest terrorist organization in the world was the Saudi Al-
Qaeda, which was the queen of terrorism.
On the following map you can see a possible state for ISIS. With brown you
can see the Sunni parts of Syria and Iraq, with orange the Shiite part of Iraq,
with dark brown the Alawite part of Syria, and with beige the Kurdish parts
of Syria and Iraq.
Map 2 A Possible State for ISIS (Sunni Syria and Iraq)
http://cdn2.vox-cdn.com/assets/4396135/sunni-shia-kurd_state_crop.jpg
5. For Al-Qaeda I must say that it is not controlled by the Saudi King as many
people might think. Al-Qaeda is a complex organization which has to do
with the Saudi elites and the power game within Saudi Arabia. Osama bin
Laden, the father of Al-Qaeda, was targeting the Saudi King too, and that’s
why he could work with the Iranians too, even though Iran was a rival for
Osama bin Laden too. See Breitbart “Iran Worked with Al Qaeda, Docs
from Raid on Bin Laden Compound Show”, July 2015.
See also “The Alliance Between Iran and Al Qaeda”.
https://iakal.wordpress.com/2015/08/26/the-alliance-between-iran-and-al-
qaeda/
The Deutsche Welle article also says that the growing tension between Iran
and Saudi Arabia will lead to growing tensions in African countries with
Shiite minorities, and offers Nigeria as an example. In Nigeria the army
clashed with the Shiite Muslims of Nigeria. Note that Nigeria is one of the
richest countries in oil and gas, she is half Christian and half Muslim, and
there are clashes between Christian and Muslims, and also between Sunnis
and Shiites (Shia).
Articles
“Saudi-Iran row spills over into Africa”, January 2016
http://www.dw.com/en/saudi-iran-row-spills-over-into-africa/a-18965887
“Nigerian military attacks Shia group over blocked road, killing some”,
December 2015
6. http://edition.cnn.com/2015/12/15/africa/nigeria-attack-on-muslims/
“Iran denies shipping arms to Islamist militants in Somalia”, February 2013
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-arms-yemen-un-
idUSBRE91D0B120130214
“How al-Qaeda and Islamic State are fighting for al-Shabaab affections in
Somalia”, November 2015
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/islamic-state/12015075/How-
al-Qaeda-and-Islamic-State-are-fighting-for-al-Shabaab-affections-in-
Somalia.html
“Iran Worked with Al Qaeda, Docs from Raid on Bin Laden Compound
Show”, July 2015
http://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2015/07/31/iran-worked-with-al-
qaeda-docs-from-raid-on-bin-laden-compound-show/
7. http://edition.cnn.com/2015/12/15/africa/nigeria-attack-on-muslims/
“Iran denies shipping arms to Islamist militants in Somalia”, February 2013
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-arms-yemen-un-
idUSBRE91D0B120130214
“How al-Qaeda and Islamic State are fighting for al-Shabaab affections in
Somalia”, November 2015
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/islamic-state/12015075/How-
al-Qaeda-and-Islamic-State-are-fighting-for-al-Shabaab-affections-in-
Somalia.html
“Iran Worked with Al Qaeda, Docs from Raid on Bin Laden Compound
Show”, July 2015
http://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2015/07/31/iran-worked-with-al-
qaeda-docs-from-raid-on-bin-laden-compound-show/
