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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 RIYADH 000911 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/11/2019 TAGS: PHUM, KIRF, KISL, PGOV, SA SUBJECT: SAUDI EDITOR LAMENTS MUSLIM INSENSITIVITY TO VIOLENCE Classified By: CHARGE AMBASSADOR RICHARD ERDMAN REASONS 1.4 (B) & (D) SUMMARY ------- 1. (C) Over breakfast on June 28, Al-Watan Editor-in-Chief Jamal Khashoggi argued to Charge that the influence of the Saudi religious establishment was declining, though this didn't necessarily translate into support for secularization. He attributed intensified religious observance in Saudi Arabia over the past two or so decades to influence of Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood members teaching in Saudi schools in the 1980s, and lamented a growing insensitivity to violence that seemed currently prevalent. End summary. AL-WATAN'S PROVOCATIVE VOICE ---------------------------- 2. (C) Khashoggi (strictly protect) talked at length about the relationship between the conservatives and religious factions in Saudi Arabia. (Note: Khashoggi, now known as a reformer, was a Muslim Brother in his youth. Today he is a leading voice for reform. Khashoggi was among the Arab journalists chosen to interview President Obama following his June 4 speech in Cairo. End note.) He noted that his paper Al-Watan criticizes the religious establishment but held that the extent to which they do so is often exaggerated while their intent is often misunderstood. "We might run an article about secularism but that shouldn't be confused with our promoting it, however; it is usually interpreted that way," he said. 3. (C) Al-Watan has had a tendentious relationship with the country's religious establishment. Khashoggi was fired by Minister of Interior Prince Nayif Bin Abdul-Aziz in 2003 for printing articles that were critical of the religious authorities; however, he was reinstated as Editor-in-Chief in 2007. Since then, he has been called in by the authorities from time to time for having pushed the envelope too far, and Prince Nayif recently attacked Al-Watan for not being objective or accurate. Khashoggi said Nayif's comments were "unnecessary and have caused damage to the paper." On the other hand, the caliber of Al-Watan's journalistic staff was a mixed bag, which meant they sometimes left him very exposed and without a good defense when highly inaccurate stories were published without well-sourced, confirmed information. FEARING THE WRATH OF GOD ------------------------ 4. (C) Khashoggi pointed out that Saudi society had not always been so conservative. Political leaders, he said, used religion and fear to manipulate the population and gain power. The arrival of members of the Muslim Brotherhood from Egypt and the subsequent emergence of the Sahwa (awakening) movement caused many in Saudi Arabia to begin to see God as a "punisher" rather than "God the merciful and compassionate," despite the fact that Muslim prayer begins with these words. Over time, this changed concept of God resulted in a shift in both behavior and attitudes. "Books about the hereafter flooded Saudi Arabia and many girls who had not veiled before began to do so because they were afraid of God,s wrath," he said. 5. (C) Today, however, Khashoggi opined that the power of the religious establishment was often exaggerated and that, in reality, it had become a burden on Saudi Arabia that drained government resources without providing "any fresh ideas that can help solve the problems the country faces." In Khashoggi's view, it was the young Western-educated professionals who have been instrumental in finding solutions to the country's problems, not the Ulema. Significantly, the middle class professional elements of society were rising as the religious establishment was declining. TEXTBOOKS AREN'T THE ONLY PROBLEM --------------------------------- 6. (C) In response to Charge's inquiries about Saudi textbooks Khashoggi acknowledged that major deficiencies exist. The problem, however, was not simply with books, but teachers as well. He recalled a question that was printed in a textbook: "How can you identify a woman who can breed more children?" Hoping to demonstrate the absurdity of the question, Khashoggi printed it in Al-Watan and solicited answers from educational and medical professionals. Of course no one could provide a reasonable answer. 7. (C) Khashoggi said he would continue to use his paper to highlight flaws in Saudi schools, which promoted the uncritical view that Islam was under siege and the subject of RIYADH 00000911 002 OF 002 conspiracies. To expose this kind of thinking, he said he would print another absurd question he recently discovered in another textbook: "There are a number of International Organizations that can conspire against the Muslims. Who are they?" Just what organizations were they referring to, he scoffed, the UN? WHO? UNHCR? VIEWS OF AL-QAEDA COMPLICATED BY INSENSITIVITY TO VIOLENCE ---------------------------- 8. (C) Khashoggi described Saudi perceptions of Al-Qaeda as "complicated", noting that Saudis become upset if a terrorist group attacks the Kingdom but seem not to mind if there is an attack on the U.S. He appeared troubled as he discussed his sense that the majority of Saudis are not bothered by violence in the Muslim world. "The brutality in Iraq and Pakistan is not moving us," he lamented, "but if a cartoonist at the Baltimore Sun depicted the Prophet in one of his cartoons, it would cause an uproar." Asked by Charge to describe why he thought this was the case, Khashoggi answered that "the circle of violence has grown and Saudis indulge in it." 9. (C) Khashoggi went on to discuss the advent of suicide bombings, arguing that such attacks, which he characterized as "undoubtedly haram (forbidden) in Islam," were not used in Afghanistan, Algeria and not even in Palestine until the 1990,s. He recalled telling a Saudi religious scholar that it was necessary for them to issue a strong fatwa against suicide bombing. "The scholar," he said, "listened but was not very interested. It didn't move him. I guess we are waiting for someone to go inside of the Grand Mosque and blow himself up." Khashoggi concluded that the Saudis should call for a closed-door conference to handle this problem. Doing so, he said, "would serve the U.S. interest in stopping terrorism and would serve Saudi interests by saving Islam." COMMENT ------- 10. (C) As a former member of the Muslim Brotherhood in his youth, Khashoggi is well-placed to evaluate the extent of the religious establishment's influence. These days Khashoggi finds himself the target of occasional royal ire over articles published in Al-Watan, considered by many as the most pro-reform daily in Saudi Arabia. Rumors recently circulated that he had again run afoul of Prince Nayif's red lines. The rumors proved untrue, with Khashoggi returning from vacation to arrange a photo op with Nayif to put the rumors to rest. That he felt the need to do so, however, demonstrates his keen awareness of the limits within which he must operate. ERDMAN