INTERNATIONAL SECURITY NEWS – AT 8:36 P.M. ET:  There is an exciting success to report to you in international security.  We are constantly, endlessly, being told that Saudi Arabia is our great ally in the war against terror.  In fact, the Saudi royal family spends tens of millions on Washington lobbyists to tell us just that.

Well, we're happy to report that the Saudis have now shown their skill, their daring, their verve, their ability to compete with the best when civilization is on the line.  From London's Daily Mail:

A vulture tagged by scientists at Tel Aviv University has strayed into Saudi Arabian territory, where it was promptly arrested on suspicion of being a Mossad spy, Israeli and Saudi media reported Tuesday.

The bird was found in a rural area of the country wearing a transmitter and a leg bracelet bearing the words 'Tel Aviv University', according to the reports, which surfaced first in the Israeli daily Ma'ariv.

Although these tags indicate that the bird was part of a long-term research project into migration patters, residents and local reporters told Saudi Arabia's Al-Weeam newspaper that the matter seemed to be a 'Zionist plot.'

Nailed!  Absolutely nailed!  Those Saudis are on the ball.  Who needs women's rights when you've got gutsy residents and local reporters who know what's really important?

The accusations went viral, with hundreds of posts on Arabic-language websites and forums claiming that the 'Zionists' had trained these birds for espionage.

The Sinai regional governor last month suggested that a shark that killed and maimed tourists on its Red Sea port may have been intentionally released by Israeli agents in order to sabotage the country's tourist industry.

COMMENT:  I don't know about you, but I for one will sleep better tonight knowing the Saudi security services are out there, joined by their Sinai, Egypt, brothers.  When will Hollywood wake up and do the movie?

January 4, 2011