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Does Saudi Arabia support Baathist resistance in Iraq, currently led by Ad-Douri? Do they want to install a similar regime as in Egypt to counter the Qatari influence?

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    That is two separate questions, and probably should be posted separately
    – user4012
    Commented Nov 8, 2016 at 1:06
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    Considering the rather egalitarian stance of baathists on money ("arab socialism"), my guess is no.
    – user5751924
    Commented Apr 26, 2017 at 18:06
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    Could you source your question to include which Ad-Douri (or if it's an Al-Douri) that leads the Baathist movement? It's not immediately apparent who that is when searching.
    – isakbob
    Commented Aug 17, 2019 at 15:37
  • Do people still support Baathism nowadays?
    – Golden Cuy
    Commented Sep 17, 2019 at 1:13

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Preface

  1. Conflict in the Middle East has quite a long history and has layers of complexity. Therefore expect this answer to be edited with more nuance as commenters point out clarity.
  2. While this should be one question, I will attempt to answer both and put a dividing line for each answer.

Now with the answers.

Question 1

Does Saudi Arabia support Baathist resistance in Iraq, currently led by Ad-Douri?

Answer

There does not seem to be any clearcut support from Saudi Arabia to the JRTN movement which essentially the Ba'athist resistance in Iraq led by Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, as you mention in the first part of the question.

However, he did state support in a video where he stated that he was not dead. But he has also invaded Saudi Arabia in the past, so the relationship is complicated at best:

He had a well-deserved and well-known reputation as a killer. As Vice-Chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council, he was complicit in launching two wars of aggression against Iran and Kuwait, invading Saudi Arabia and attacking the town of Khafji in January 1991. He was involved in the brutal repression of the Uprising which followed the Gulf War in 1991 including mass executions, torture and wanton destruction. He was complicit in the deliberate destruction of the Marsh Arabs' way of life. He was also complicit in the genocidal Anfal campaigns waged against the Kurds, including chemical weapons attacks, the destruction of rural villages and infrastructure, and mass executions.

Question 2

Do they want to install a similar regime as in Egypt to counter the Qatari influence?

Answer

They essentially did this with the military coup against Mohammed Morsi that installed Al-Sisi as part of a longstanding influence conflict. That said, there doesn't seem to be any similarities with Ba'athism or the JRTN movement led by Al-Douri.

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  • Good answer, Baathism is a weird fascist, Stalinism amalgamation really just in practice in Saddam Hussein's Iraq and Syria
    – user9790
    Commented Sep 17, 2019 at 0:45
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    @KDog: Ba'athism is what happens when one tries to implement social democracy with a nationalist bent (Michel 'Aflaq...) through a military coup.
    – einpoklum
    Commented Sep 17, 2019 at 12:15
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    I do not understand what both of these comments have to do with Saudi Arabia supporting Ba'athist resistance in Iraq (and elsewhere) specifically.
    – isakbob
    Commented Sep 17, 2019 at 13:00

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