--- description: A prominent British think tank claims that Saudi Arabia is the principle foreign promoter of Islamist extremism in the United Kingdom. title: Report: Saudi Arabia Has a 'Clear Link' to U.K. Extremism image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc365456156305bf4/6988d4667cdbac068ad590f9/gettyimages-665199632.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [United Kingdom](/tag/united-kingdom/) ## United Kingdom Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # A Report Claims That Saudi Arabia Has a 'Clear Link' to Violent Jihadist Groups in the U.K. by [Joseph Hincks](/author/joseph-hincks/) ## Joseph Hincks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 5, 2017 10:01 AM CUT  Theresa May, U.K. prime minister, speaks with King Salman bin Abdulaziz, Saudi Arabia's king, during their meeting at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on April 5, 2017. Theresa May, U.K. prime minister, speaks with King Salman bin Abdulaziz, Saudi Arabia's king, during their meeting at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on April 5, 2017.Simon Dawson—Bloomberg/Getty Images by [Joseph Hincks](/author/joseph-hincks/) ## Joseph Hincks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 5, 2017 10:01 AM CUT A report by a British think tank claims that Saudi Arabia is the principle foreign promoter of Islamist extremism in the United Kingdom and alleges a “clear and growing link” between overseas funding and violent Jihadist groups in the country. The Henry Jackson Society — a neo-conservative think tank — also urges a public inquiry into the funding of terrorism by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, the BBC [reports](http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-40496778 "undefined"). The call comes as U.K. lawmakers face mounting pressure to release the findings of their own probe into domestic extremist groups, instigated by former Prime Minister David Cameron in 2015\. In May, the Home Office [described the findings](https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/may/31/sensitive-uk-terror-funding-inquiry-findings-may-never-be-published-saudi-arabia "undefined") as “very sensitive” and said that they wouldn’t necessarily be made public. **Read more:** [_Middle East Rifts Are Widening Amid a Global Power Vacuum_](http://time.com/4819562/middle-east-rifts-are-widening/ "undefined") Like the United States, the U.K. has deep and convoluted security and economic ties with Saudi Arabia. In an April visit, British Prime Minister Theresa May reaffirmed the importance of the relationship. However, British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn has lobbied for a block on arms exports to Saudi Arabia on the grounds of the Kingdom’s military action in Yemen and its poor human rights record. In a statement cited by the BBC, Saudi Arabia’s embassy in London dismissed the findings of the Henry Jackson Society as “categorically false” and said they lacked “credible evidence.” \[[BBC](http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-40496778 "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4844827/saudi-arabia-uk-terrorism-jihadist/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4844827/saudi-arabia-uk-terrorism-jihadist/"},"headline":"A Report Claims That Saudi Arabia Has a 'Clear Link' to Violent Jihadist Groups in the U.K.","datePublished":"2017-07-05T10:01:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T16:25:55.233Z","description":"The study also urges a public inquiry into the funding of terrorism by Saudi Arabia","url":"https://time.com/4844827/saudi-arabia-uk-terrorism-jihadist/","keywords":["United Kingdom","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc365456156305bf4/6988d4667cdbac068ad590f9/gettyimages-665199632.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Joseph Hincks","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/joseph-hincks/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc365456156305bf4/6988d4667cdbac068ad590f9/gettyimages-665199632.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May Visits Saudi Arabia To Promote Trade And Security","caption":"U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May Visits Saudi Arabia To Promote Trade And Security","creditText":"Simon Dawson—Bloomberg/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/united-kingdom/","name":"United Kingdom"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4844827/saudi-arabia-uk-terrorism-jihadist/","name":"A Report Claims That Saudi Arabia Has a 'Clear Link' to Violent Jihadist Groups in the U.K."}}]}] ```