BRUSSELS, Belgium: A Brussels-based think-tank the International Crisis Group (ICG) has said Saudi Arabia should act decisively to defuse rising sectarian tensions, and King Abdullah, who has shown a willingness to tackle this issue in the past, has the opportunity to take the required steps.
 
"The Shiite Question in Saudi Arabia," the latest report from the ICG said Saudi Arabia must take action to extend rights and protection for the Shiite in order to prevent frustration escalating into violence.
 
The International Crisis Group is an independent, nonprofit, nongovernmental organization covering over 50 crisis-affected countries and territories across four continents, working through field-based analysis and high-level advocacy to prevent and resolve deadly conflict.
 
While the king has shown sympathy for the Shiite, reforms strengthening their rights will require a long-term investment and commitment to social and political integration, added the report.
 
Toby Craig Jones, the ICG analyst for the Persian Gulf said: "This is an important test for King Abdullah … The potential for instability will continue to grow unless he reins in anti-Shiite hostility."
 
To avert a crisis, the report recommended that Saudi Arabia should increase Shiite representation in government, lift remaining restrictions on their religious rituals and practices specifically by allowing construction of mosques and community centers (husseiniyyat) and the production, printing, and circulation of religious materials within their communities, encourage tolerance and eliminating anti-Shiism in mosques and schools, and muzzle statements and activities that incite violence against them.
 
The report urged the US and the EU to temper their public messages on these issues and focus on broader reforms, including expanding the rights and political participation of all Saudis.
 
The full report is available at www.crisisgroup.org.