This is a very solid and informative post. If you're interested about this period of history, I recommend reading "Thicker than Oil" by Rachel Bronson, a book

This is a very solid and informative post. If you're interested about this period of history, I recommend reading "Thicker than Oil" by Rachel Bronson, a book which documents the U.S. - Saudi relationship during the 20th century. It covers all of these events and more. Edit -- to clarify further, the OP was referring to the split in the Islamic world in the 60s-70s between traditional Saudi leadership (favoring strong religious fundamentalism) and a new, mostly secular movement termed Pan-Arabism or Arab Nationalism. Since the Pan-Arabists were usually more favorable to Soviet influence, we naturally supported the Saudis and actually fostered several initiatives to increase religious fervor & fundamentalism.