Could Gulf States Join Israel in Attacking Iran?

Senior diplomats from Arab and Muslim countries held an emergency meeting this week, overshadowed by Iran’s ballistic missile attack on oil and gas facilities in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait. Could the escalation triggered by Israel’s attack on the Pars gas field in Iranian territory turn into a civil war among Muslims? Iran’s strikes in the Gulf were retaliation for Israel’s attack on half of South Pars in southern Iran, the world’s largest gas field owned by the Islamic Republic and Qatar. Gulf states immediately condemned Israel’s initial attack that provoked Iran’s retaliation, but responded with anger towards Iran. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud warned Iran that tolerance for their attacks on his country and neighbouring Gulf states is limited. He called on Tehran to immediately “recalculate” its strategy. He reminded them that Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries have “very significant capacity and capability” that could be utilised if they choose to attack. The foreign minister said at a press conference on Thursday morning that Iran had carefully planned its strategy to attack neighbouring countries. This was denied by Tehran diplomats. “The patience shown is not unlimited. Do they [Iran] have a day, two, a week? I will not send a telegram about that,” he added. “I hope they understand the message of today’s meeting and immediately recalculate and stop attacking their neighbours. But I doubt they have the wisdom for that.” Prince Faisal’s warning followed a meeting of foreign ministers from Arab and Islamic countries in the Saudi capital the previous day to discuss the expansion of war in the region, which on Wednesday witnessed Iran’s attacks on Gulf energy sites, including the Ras Laffan gas facility in Qatar, which reportedly suffered significant damage, and the Habshan gas facility in the United Arab Emirates. What was missing from the statements from Riyadh was condemnation of Israel and the United States for the attack on the Pars gas field, which Iran used as a pretext to strike oil and gas facilities in the Gulf states. Iran considers Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait legitimate targets due to the presence of US military bases in those countries. For example, Al Udeid base in Qatar is the largest US military base in the Middle East. There are 10,000 US troops at the base, as well as the headquarters of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), which orchestrates attacks on Iran.