Saudi Arabia’s plan for a Muslim alliance against terrorism – announced at a press conference in Riyadh early on Tuesday – is designed to display determination to fight the jihadis of Islamic State and to help the west do so. But key details about how it will work and whether it will even involve military forces on any front lines remain unclear.

Announcing the creation of the 34-member group, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the conservative kingdom’s defence minister, was apparently responding to a call by Barack Obama for the Islamic world to do more in the war against Isis.

The Saudis, the UAE and Jordan have all taken part in US-led airstrikes in Syria, but have not deployed ground troops. The Saudis are preoccupied by the war in Yemen. And, in the current sectarian mood across the Middle East, every Sunni country has citizens who do not actively support Isis or al-Qaida but admire their perceived “fightback” against Shia groups and Iran, especially in Syria.

The surprise announcement appeared to be aimed for primetime TV in the US, where Barack Obama has presided over a sharp decline in relations with Riyadh amid mounting western criticism of Saudi policy on human rights, Yemen, Wahhabi intolerance and allegations of support for Isis.

It was welcomed by the US, Britain and other countries and extensively reported by Saudi-owned media. But western diplomats said there had been no prior consultation about the move and that little information was available.

Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi foreign minister, said the coalition would share intelligence and deploy troops if necessary. “Nothing is off the table,” he told reporters in Paris. “A number of countries are in desperate need of assistance.” Military help would be considered on a case-by-case basis.



“With the threat of terrorism and state failure on the rise, and a growing leadership vacuum in the Arab and Islamic world, Riyadh saw a clear need to institutionalise cooperation in combatting terrorism,” said another Saudi official.

“The aim of the alliance is to create an institutional platform for cooperation among Arab and Islamic countries. It does not necessarily call for the mobilisation of forces at the present stage but it lays the foundation for planning future coordinated responses to terrorist threats.”



The alliance goes beyond the obvious candidates in the Gulf and Egypt to include Turkey, Pakistan and Malaysia as well as Nigeria, Mali and other African countries. It conspicuously excludes Iran and Iraq – supporters of what the Saudis call “Shia terrorism” – and Syria, where Riyadh backs rebels fighting to overthrow Bashar al-Assad.

It also excludes Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim country, as well as Oman, the most independent state in the Gulf.

Arab critics attacked the notion that a state perceived as promoting extremism could itself fight extremists. The coalition was a PR stunt, said the commentator Iyad al-Baghdadi. “Saudi Arabia heads a UN human rights council panel and now it leads an alliance against terrorism,” tweeted the Iraq expert Hayder al-Khoei of Chatham House. “This joke doesn’t need a punchline.”

Saudis counter that they are targeted by Isis as they were in the past by al-Qaida. “The Saudis feel they are under attack from the media suggesting they are responsible for Daesh (Isis),” said Mustafa Alani of the Gulf Research Centre, which often reflects thinking in Riyadh. “They felt a need to answer this not by counter propaganda but by a realistic project.”

Isis requires a military response, Alani added. “The nature of terrorism is changing. It is not only hit-and-run. It is not only suicide bombings. Its objective now is state-building. If you want to fight Daesh in Iraq you can’t send police or security people. You need to send real military forces.”

Independent observers were sceptical about Saudi motives. “It looks like a bit of positioning,” said a former diplomat. “There’s been so much stuff saying the Saudis and Daesh are the same. This is one way of saying they are not. It is pretty thin. It doesn’t make sense in terms of its stated aims.”



Iran is another factor behind the move, analysts argue. Tehran and Riyadh are at loggerheads across the region, with tensions high over the wars in Syria and Yemen, and Saudi fears that the imminent lifting of nuclear-related sanctions will boost Iran’s position.

“At the end of the day this is a political message, not an operational strategic one,” said Michael Stephens of the Royal United Services Institute. “It seems very ad hoc. But as well as coming up with an initiative that puts them back in western good books, it is aimed at blocking Iran – not just in the Middle East but on the periphery in places like Nigeria. It builds options.”