(Former Saudi Ambassador to the US, Prince Bandar in happier times, before becoming Saudi Intelligence Chief and possible murder victim.)
The Presumptive Republican Nominee for President and the sitting (or standing) SECDEF Leon Panetta have been trooping around the Middle East lately. Mitt just got back after a colorful trip to demonstrate his credentials in foreign policy, which included some remarks that the media pounced on in feigned outrage, though all of them seemed to be true enough, if a little inconvenient.
Mr. Panetta is in Israel this morning to bolster the Administration’s relations with the Israelis and undermine Mitt’s lavish promises of support, should he be elected.
Mr. Romney is actually the middle slice of Spam in an American political sandwich. In addition to SECDEF, National Security Advisor Tom Donilon paid a clandestine visit just before Mitt arrived. Donilon has no apparent background in the creation of US contingency plans for a pre-emptive strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, but that is what he was there to talk about.
His background is as a State Department Public Affairs Officer, and I suspect the source of many of the leaks about clandestine operations.
Between this fawning by the Administration and the blank check Mr.Romney wrote with his remarks, you would think that Bebe Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak would be sitting pretty, but his national unity government is unraveling and it is not clear how free a hand he is going to have in the next few months.
That is the public face on the news, and that is what is so surprising. You will recall the devastating attack on the Syrian Leadership Council meeting that killed al-Assad’s Defense Minister, Deputy Defense Minister, a former Defense minister, al Assad’s brother-in-law, the Intelligence chief perhaps others.
Although the Arab Street pointed the finger at the CIA, it is much more likely that the Saudis had their fingers on the operation. Just one man’s opinion, of course, until you get to the other story you did not hear about this week.
Saudi Intelligence Chief, Prince Bandar Bin Sultan, has not been seen in public since the bombing of the general intelligence headquarters in Riyadh last week. He was elevated to that position just recently, after the suicide bombing in Syria.
Badly injured? Dead?
You would think that the fate of the man who was a close buddy to the Bush family and Ambassador to the US for twenty two years might be of interest, and put a spotlight on some of the players in a spiraling-out-of-control civil war might be of interest.
Granted the Saudi Government has stonewalled all information on the attack, although it appears certain that at least Bandar’s deputy chief was confirmed killed. Best guess is that this is a revenge attack for the murder of the Syrian leadership.
For its part, Iran has been publicly claiming that the Saudis are destabilizing the Alawite regime in Damascus, and others are muttering that the attack in Riyadh was the work of Iran’s al Kuds force.
No matter which Americans visit Jerusalem these days, on thing is for sure: there is more going on here that we have little or no ability to influence, or events that could definitely impact the debate as we head for November.
This is interesting indeed. Don’t expect to see a lot of reports about the missing Prince Bandar, though. There is no good news for anyone in this story and no one wants another war before the election.
At least not here.
Copyright 2012 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com