Saudi intelligence source confirms reporting that crown prince has urged Trump to ramp up ‘historic opportunity’ to remake Middle East – key US politics stories from Friday 27 March at a glance

Saudi Arabia has urged the US to ramp up attacks on Iran, a Saudi intelligence source has confirmed, as it decides whether to join the fight directly.

The Saudi source confirmed reporting in the New York Times that said the kingdom’s de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has urged Donald Trump not to cut short his war against Iran, and that the US-Israeli campaign represented a “historic opportunity” to remake the Middle East.

The intelligence source said Riyadh was not just calling for the military campaign to be continued, but to be intensified. Trump appeared to confirm the report about the crown prince’s role, telling journalists on Tuesday: “Yeah, he’s a warrior. He’s fighting with us.”

Saudi Arabia and Iran, claiming leadership roles of the Sunni and Shia Islamic worlds respectively, have long been regional rivals. According to a leaked US state department cable, the crown prince’s paternal uncle King Abdullah urged the US military in 2008 to “cut off the head of the snake”, a reference to the theocratic regime in Tehran.