Meanwhile the Saudi mission in Geneva was stuck dealing with a multi-million dollar limo bill racked up by a Saudi princess and her entourage.
The diplomatic documents published by WikiLeaks yesterday are only the first batch of what the transparency group says will be a much larger release, but they've already provided an unusual level of insight into the day-to-day of Saudi diplomacy giving a snapshot of the lavish spending habits of senior royals and the political intrigue percolating across the Middle East.
Saudi officials have not explicitly challenged the authenticity of the documents and Saudi diplomats have not answered repeated requests for comment. However, the Foreign Ministry posted a carefully worded message on its Twitter account today morning, warning citizens to avoid visiting "any website with the aim of getting a document or leaked information that could be untrue and aims to harm the nation."
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An undated memo apparently sent from the Saudi Embassy in Tehran made note of what it said was the "frustration of the Iranian citizen and his strong desire for regime change" and suggested ways to publicly expose Iran's social grievances through "the Internet, social media like Facebook and Twitter."
It also suggests "hosting opposition figures overseas, coordinating with them and encouraging them to use galleries to show pictures of torture carried by the Iranian regime against people."
Another memo, dated to 2012, accuses the United Arab Emirates of helping Russia and Iran circumvent international sanctions. A third memo marked "top secret" makes the startling claim that Iranian fighter jets bombed South Sudanese forces during a 2012 standoff over the oil-rich area of Heglig.
There are many such hard-to-confirm stories in the Saudi documents.