The relationship between Arab regimes and Islamists has always been complex. Political interests rather than pure ideological affinity underpin this relationship. In part I of this paper I use the label Islamists to discuss how Arab regimes fluctuated between conflict, reconciliation, competition, and accommodation in their relations with Islamists. In part II, I show that while there are certain historical affinities between the Saudi regime and Islamists, the Saudis resembled other Arab regimes as they pursued their survival interests at the expense of the close ideological or religious agendas when they dealt with Islamists on their soil.
Arab world, islamists, Saudi Arabia, Political Science, Anthropology of the Arab world, Religious Studies.