RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia's warm official welcome for President Bush, the scion of a family with close ties to the kingdom's ruling family, masks his deep unpopularity among ordinary Saudis.
A recent poll found only 12 percent here view Bush positively — lower than Iran's president or even al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden — and more think warmly toward Iran than America.
Among the reasons are the chaos in Iraq that followed the U.S.-led invasion and the widespread Arab feeling that the United States is biased in favor of Israel and not serious in seeking Mideast peace. A recent editorial said everything the president touches "turns to dust and ashes."
That mirrors the deep distrust many Americans hold toward Saudi Arabia — the homeland of 15 of the 19 Sept. 11 hijackers — even as U.S. leaders praise Saudi Arabia's leadership in the region and its crackdown on Islamic extremism........
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