Saudi king urged US to attack Iran: Leaked US documents

LONDON: King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia urged the United States to attack Iran to destroy its nuclear programme, according to US documents revealed by WikiLeaks, published by the Guardian newspaper on Sunday.

A cable to Washington from the US embassy in Riyadh recorded the king's "frequent exhortations to the US to attack Iran and so put an end to its nuclear weapons program."

The memo said that the king told the Americans to "cut off the head of the snake," and said that working with the US to roll back Iranian influence in Iraq was "a strategic priority for the king and his government."

The document, taken from WikiLeaks and published by Britain's Guardian newspaper, said that Washington believed Saudi attitudes towards Iraq were "marked by skepticism and suspicion." WikiLeaks on Sunday released around 250,000 classified cables, some sent as recently as February this year, to several media outlets worldwide.

Earlier Sunday, the US ambassador to Britain Louis Susman condemned the document release. "Any unauthorized disclosure of classified information by WikiLeaks has the very real potential to harm innocent individuals as well as efforts to advance objectives we share with the United Kingdom and nations around the world," he said.

"I am confident that our uniquely productive relationship with the United Kingdom will remain close and strong, focused on promoting our shared objectives and values."

The Guardian reported that the documents were allegedly downloaded by a US soldier and passed on to the website.

WikiLeaks chief said, Julian Assange, said the released documents addressed "every major issue in every country in the world".