Participation in Syrian Airstrikes Reflects Saudi Fears

As airstrikes led by the United States against the militant group Islamic State continued on Wednesday, for the first time in over two decades – Saudi Arabia and several other Gulf monarchies openly joined the campaign.

While Arab participation in the strikes is of more symbolic than military value, analysts described it as a bold move for a group of countries that for long preferred to act via proxies instead of any direct involvement.

Saudi Arabia said that its airforce took part in military operations in Syria to “support the moderate Syrian opposition within an international coalition to combat the deadly disease of terrorism and to support the Syrian people,” according to a statement by the state news agency.

To be sure, Arab Gulf countries–particularly Saudi Arabia–have been increasingly expressing their concern about the rise of extremist groups as a result of the crisis in Syria and repeatedly showed their frustration with the Obama administration’s reluctance to fully support the opposition and moderate rebel fighters.

The Saudis however have always appeared held back by fear of a domestic backlash if they target fellow Muslims.

Announcing the kingdom’s participation in the campaign suggests that it now sees the risk posed by Islamic State outweighing the traditional fear of aggravating its own population by lining up publicly with the U.S. for the first time since the 1991 Gulf War.

“Gulf reaction was overdue. They were complacent for a long time,” said Emile Hokayem, a Middle East analyst at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

The monarchies were stung by two accusations, Mr. Hokayem said. First is that they created and supported Islamic State, and second is that the billions of dollars they invested in their militaries were wasted. “They had to show prowess and capability in the face of these accusations,” he said.

A few hours after confirming participation in the airstrikes, the official Saudi Press Agency published photos of the eight fighter pilots who carried out the attacks. The photos also ran on the front pages of most local newspapers on Wednesday.

The rare public acknowledgement and showcasing of the pilots who took part in the strikes “sends a powerful message to ISIS [IS], the Muslim and Arab worlds and the West that Saudi Arabia is doing a lot more than simply paying lip service to the anti-ISIS effort,” said Fahad Nazer, a terrorism analyst at Virginia-based JTG and former political analyst at the Saudi Embassy in Washington DC.

Local media identified one of the pilots as Prince Khaled bin Salman, son of the Saudi crown prince, who received military aviation training at Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi. Another Saudi prince also flew in the mission.

“The reported participation of Crown Prince Salman’s son also sends a special message to the Saudi people about the gravity of the threat and about the need for all Saudis to do their part in confronting the danger,” Mr. Nazer said.

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(via WSJ Blogs)