RIYADH/DUBAI - Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah's disdain for Iran leaps from U.S. embassy cables. "May God prevent us from falling victim to their evil," he told U.S. officials, according to a cable released by WikiLeaks. According to another, he told his own diplomats he wanted Washington to "cut off the head of the snake".
On the other side of the Gulf, Iran's contempt for Saudi Arabia crackles through a report on its hardline Mashregh website. The kingdom's ruling family, it said, was "drowning in corruption and prostitutes".
Into this toxic environment steps Iran's newly inaugurated President Hassan Rouhani, promising to improve what may well be the single most venomous and destructive relationship in the entire Middle East.
It is almost impossible to overstate the hatred between Sunni Saudi Arabia and Shi'ite Iran, which has fuelled a decade of violence across the region.
Reuters Next — Saudi feud too bitter for new Iran president to fix
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