The latest WikiLeaks show Arab rulers have a slavish relationship with the US government and is further proof of the widening gulf between the rulers and the public.

The leaks show some of the views Arab rulers expressed to US diplomats

• King Abdallah of Saudi Arabia confesses his closeness to George Bush and Bush’s father and tells White House counterterrorism adviser John Brennan it is “critically important” for the new president to restore America’s credibility. Unlike the public, it seems the King believes US involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia and the wider region has been nothing but good! The King said “We (the U.S. and Saudi Arabia) spilled blood together” in Kuwait and Iraq, the King continued, and Saudi Arabia valued this tremendously. Friendship can be a difficult issue that requires work, Abdullah said, but the U.S. and Saudi Arabia have done it for 70 years over three generations. “Our disagreements don’t cut to the bone,”

• The president of Yemen, Ali Abdallah Saleh, allows the US to bomb and kill his own citizens but is afraid of a hostile public’s backlash so claims that such bombings were by Yemeni forces. He told General Patraeus: “We’ll continue saying the bombs are ours, not yours.”

• Most Arab leaders want the US to tackle Iran, even to wage a war against it but evidently do not say so publicly for fear of Arab public opinion and reaction. On the other hand, the public in Iran and across the Muslim world see Israel as the rogue entity which needs to be confronted militarily.

For most Muslims, these views are actually not surprising. After all, these leaders have long been seen as sell outs. If not for their slavish support, it would be impossible for western governments to have military bases in our lands or to maintain their military, economic, and political subjugation of the Muslim lands. These leaks are just additional proof of the weak and fearful Arab leaders who are dependent on US protection and who are so out of step with the views of the public.

It is no wonder that the public increasingly clamour for a strong and sincere Islamic leadership, the Khilafah state, which will once again harness the vast resources, unify this ummah, rule by the Islamic shariah, establish justice and end the domination of the Muslim lands by foreign powers.

“For Allah is One full of strength, able to enforce His Will.”

[Translation of meaning Al-Mujadilah 58:21]

Taji Mustafa

Media Representative of Hizb ut-Tahrir in Britain