Pakistani guard returns to Saudi Arabia
Although the small force is officially there on a train-and-assist mission, the arrangement is reminiscent of a military practice from decades ago designed to protect the Saudi royal family from domestic and foreign threats.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, often referred to by his initials MBS, is arranging the deployment of a Pakistani praetorian guard to the kingdom. Its size and purpose is unclear, but it is a revival of a military practice from the 1980s designed to protect the royal family from enemies at home and abroad.
The Pakistani military announced Feb. 15 that it would deploy a force to Saudi Arabia to assist and train Saudi forces. The Pakistani press is reporting that a composite brigade-size force will be sent. They will join 1,000 army trainers and advisers already in Saudi Arabia.
The announcement follows two trips this year to the kingdom by Pakistan Chief of Staff Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa to meet with the crown prince, who is also defense minister and the main proponent of the deployment.
In 1982, Pakistani dictator Gen. Zia ul-Haq sent a reinforced armored brigade to Saudi Arabia at the request of King Fahd. The 12th Khaled bin Walid Independent Armored Brigade was stationed near Tabuk in northwest Saudi Arabia, but its principal purpose was to be an elite fighting force to defend the monarchy from any foe at home or abroad. The Saudis paid all of the expenses of this loyal palace guard, which remained in the kingdom for more than a decade. It was named after one of Prophet Muhammad’s greatest generals who defeated the Byzantine and Sassanian empires in the early expansion of Islam out of the Arabian Peninsula in the seventh century.
