Saudi Arabia: Riyadh Adapts to Ongoing Protests

Shiite youth activists in Saudi Arabia's Eastern Province are pressing on with their increasingly violent fight for greater political freedom in the kingdom. Their tactics have evolved since the outset of protests in early 2011, and they have begun to resemble those of Shiite protesters in neighboring Bahrain, where similar protests erupted around the same time. The Saudi government's inability to shut down the opposition completely has compelled Riyadh to adjust its tactics, and as the protests continue to evolve, Riyadh's preferred tactic — co-opting conservative Shiite clerics to rein in more radical Shia — will become even less effective. The government thus will explore new tactics and intensify other efforts to pacify the protesters.