The Saudi royal family has no moral authority to ever define or legislate Islam because Mecca and Medina fall in their contemporary borders. They are a wealthy and conservative petrostate. A quick glance at the headlines in recent years show how depraved and insulated they are.
- Yemen: 85,000 children may have died from starvation
- Jamal Khashoggi: Saudi Arabia admits murder was “premeditated”
- Saudi Shī’a: Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr and the Forgotten Shiites
- West Africa: The Struggle for Mali
- Dissidents: Female right-to-drive activists tortured
The Saudi regime has always been emboldened by favorable resources and geopolitics. The United States and Europe turns a blind eye because they need Saudi oil and a weapons buyer. Fellow Muslim countries look to Saudi for foreign aid and religious guidance. Let us not equate Saudi with Islam and let us hold our countries accountable to these alliances with this royal family. The Saudi people deserve better.