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Thanks, Rik, for this and the previous Times article. There follows a good history of the Saud family, from its rise to riches and its ...

Mansouled Fiery Islands WE ARE ALL KITH AND KIN, only 6° of separation among us Friday, August 29, 2014 The Saud Family, Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, and all the ret of us Thanks, Rik, for this and the previous Times article. There follows a good history of the Saud family, from its rise to riches and its fateful tie, in 1744, to Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, founder of "Wahhabism," A current manifestation of that political-religious union is the UAE's bombing of Muslims who are not adherents of Wahhabism, in Libya. When the Arabs feel strong enough to bomb fellow Muslims, more virulent attacks on Israel and Hamas, and on the West and its values of democracy and the Rule of Law seem immanent. Wahhabism has a fixation on Jews and Christians. Wahhabi Muslims don't seem to be concerned with Chinese atheists, Indian Hindus, Tuva shamans or any of the world's many other people, but only those in the Abrahamic tradition. Obama is correct to be concerned with ISIS and he other Salafist rebels in Syria, Salafism is Wahhabism writ large (and poetic justice if the Saudi creation, ISIS, were to overtake Mecca). Russia and Turkey have the best rained, best equipped, and largest land armies in Central Asia, and both have an interest in ending Wahhabism, though neither admits it, yet. Neither is dependent on the Saudi for oil. Is Obama making agreements with them as we ponder what to do? I'd bet on it. On reflection, the Royal Family, for all its faults, seems reasonable, compared to the fundamentalists the Family is beholden too. From PBS's Frontline: 1744 The Holy Alliance Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, founder of "Wahhabism," an austere form of Islam, arrives in the central Arabian state of Najd in 1744 preaching a return to "pure" Islam. He seeks protection from the local emir, Muhammad ibn Saud, head of the Al Saud tribal family, and they cut a deal. The Al Saud will endorse al-Wahhab's austere form of Islam and in return, the Al Saud will get political legitimacy and regular tithes from al-Wahhab's followers. The religious-political alliance that al-Wahhab and Saud forge endures to this day in Saudi Arabia. By the 19th century, the Al Saud has spread its influence across the Arabian Peninsula, stretching from the Red Sea to the Persian Gulf and including the Two Holy Cities of Mecca and Medina. But in 1818, forces of the Ottoman Empire sack the capital, Riyadh, and execute many of the religious and political leaders. Over the next eighty years the Al Saud attempt to reestablish their rule on the Arabian Peninsula without success. | Explore more about Wahhabism, in this section of FRONTLINE's 2001 report, "Saudi Time Bomb?". 1902 Abd al-Aziz and the Ikhwan The Ikhwan In 1902, a direct descendent of Muhammad ibn Saud, twenty-year-old Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud, rides out of the desert with 60 of his brothers and cousins to restore the rule of Al Saud. He captures Riyadh, the ancient capital of the Saudi kingdom, but to conquer all of the Arabian Peninsula, he seeks the help of nomadic Bedouins, the Ikhwan, or Muslim brothers. Renowned warriors, the Ikhwan are also fervent Wahhabi Islamic puritans who want to spread their form of Islam throughout the Middle East. 1924-25 Abd al-Aziz Captures Mecca and Medina, Crushes the Ikhwan With the Ikhwan by his side, Abd al-Aziz captures province after province of the vast desert. He captures Mecca in 1924 and Medina in 1925, becoming the ruler of the Two Holy Cities of Islam. But the Ikhwan want to spread Wahhabism beyond Arabia and when Abd al-Aziz tries to restrain them, they rebel. To survive, Abd al-Aziz realizes he has to destroy the Ikhwan. But how can he, a defender of Islam, justify going to war against his Muslim warriors? Abd al-Aziz seeks the approval of the ulama, the religious authorities, regarded as the moral guardians of the realm. With the ulama's endorsement, he crushes the Ikhwan. 1932 The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud declares himself king and gives his name to the country: Saudi Arabia. To keep his new kingdom united, he marries a daughter from every tribe as well as from the influential clerical families -- more than twenty wives, although never more than four at one time, in accordance with the Quran. These unions produce 45 legitimate sons and an unknown number of daughters (daughters are not counted). Abd al-Aziz then begins consolidating power away from the brothers and cousins who helped him conquer the peninsula in favor of his own sons. Every Saudi king since has been a son of Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud. * * * 1933 Oil! Saudi Arabia and the U.S. establish diplomatic relations, and in 1933 the first foreign oil prospectors arrive in the kingdom. The Americans pay $170,000 in gold for land concessions that turn out to contain the biggest oil fields on earth. Ignoring criticism that inviting foreigners into the kingdom is un-Islamic, and citing precedent in the Quran, King Abd al-Aziz invites U.S oil companies to develop Saudi oil resources. The oil compa...