Saudi Arabia, Iraq: Shiite Leader Al-Sadr Visits the Sunni Kingdom

Saudi Arabia is trying to strengthen its ties to Iraq and counter Iranian influence by building bridges to Iraqi political leaders. On July 31, the Shiite leader of Iraq's al-Sadrite movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, landed in the Sunni kingdom and was received by Thamer al-Sabhan, the former Saudi ambassador to Iraq and now minister of state for the Persian Gulf region. Al-Sadr met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and the talks and the tone of his visit were described in both the Iraqi and Saudi news media as positive....