in anti-government protests. Iran, which is predominantly Shia, immediately condemned

the killing, as did a number of human rights groups. Soon after, Iranians stormed the Saudi

embassy in Tehran, leading to Saudi Arabia cutting diplomatic ties with Iran. With extreme

rhetoric flying back and forth, many worry that the two countries may end up in an all

out war. So, what would happen if Saudi Arabia and Iran went to war?

Well, for decades, both countries have exemplified the Sunni-Shia divide in the Middle East.

Since 2015, they have fought a proxy war in Yemen, with Saudi Arabia and the United States

supporting the former Yemeni government, and Iran supporting the rebel faction. In the

event of an actual direct conflict, however, the landscape would be very different.

Both counties are massive, and are only separated by a few miles of Persian Gulf. Iran covers

roughly 600,000 square miles, while Saudi Arabia occupies about 800,000 square miles.

They also have very high GDPs, with Iran ranking around 28th worldwide, and Saudi Arabia at

number 19. However, Iran’s population of roughly 80 million people is more than two

and a half times the size of Saudi Arabia’s population, which is less than 30 million.

So how does this translate to an actual conflict? Well, considering their geographic locations,

the two countries are close enough for a massive land battle. In this regard, Iran could potentially

demolish Saudi Arabia, with more than 2.3 million available military members compared

to roughly 250,000. On the other hand, it isn’t necessarily manpower that wins wars,

and in the modern age, technology may be a more likely ally. While Iran spends about

6 billion dollars a year on defense, Saudi Arabia spends about 50 billion dollars more.

That’s quite a lot of tanks, planes, boats, and bombs.

But realistically, this would not be a conflict in a vacuum, and any deficiencies that each

country may have can be easily bolstered by the support of surrounding and geopolitically

involved countries. Unfortunately for Iran, the Sunni-Shia divide would likely be a deciding

factor for most Middle Eastern countries. Pew estimates that as many as 90% of all Muslims

subscribe to the Sunni faith. In fact, the only countries with a Shia majority are Iran,

Iraq, Bahrain, Azerbaijan, and, possibly Yemen. But in the days since the execution, Bahrain

has cut ties with Iran, along with a majority of the Gulf Cooperation Council, which includes

some of the most powerful countries in the Middle East.

Iran has also long seen hostility with Israel and the United States, the latter of which

is a direct ally of Saudi Arabia. In the end, despite a surplus of manpower, Iran’s geopolitical

position is much weaker than Saudi Arabia’s, and without significant support, there is

almost no chance of an Iranian victory.

There’s a lot more to Saudi Arabia and Iran’s rocky relationship than just one execution.

Find out more about the two countries’ fight to control the Middle East in the video at

the top. Learn about why how their conflict began in the video at the bottom. Thanks for

watching TestTube News! Don’t forget to subscribe for more videos. We’ll see you

next time.