A new U.S. task force is needed to check on Saudi Arabian activities.

The Bush administration has set up a task force whose goal is solicit more help from Saudi Arabia in the war on terrorism.

While the Saudis profess to be sympathetic to America, the fact is the nation is a hotbed for people who are dedicated to doing us in. And there is evidence these people are getting more help than deterrence from the people in charge.

A White House spokesman, Ari Fleischer, politely referred to Saudi Arabia as “a good partner” in trying to cut off terrorist funding. But he said Riyadh “can do more in the war against terrorism, and we will press them to do more.” Bottom-line, “you’re falling short.”

A congressional probe into intelligence failures before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack is probing a possible money trail from the Saudi government to two of the hijackers. Further, 15 of the 19 men who died in the three hijackings were Saudi citizens. Osama bin Laden is a Saudi; so are many of his top people.

Saudi officials have denied their nation financed any hijackers. But there is more than passing evidence that while top officials contend they are pro-America in the battle against terrorism, their actions belie that claim.

Saudi Arabia apologists say that any U.S. allegations about aid to terrorism are merely an attempt to gain Saudi support for a possible war against Iraq.

Recently, there has been talk that some of a Saudi princess’s charitable contributions may have found their way into terrorist treasuries. Princess Haifa bin Faisal gave money to a sick Jordanian woman living in Los Angeles who asked her for aid in early 2000. Members of the royal family periodically give help to the needy. But in this case, critics say, the Jordanian passed the money to a wife of a Saudi who helped finance two of the Sept. 11 hijackers. The princess and her spokespeople deny that happened.

Still, the U.S. feeling is that in the present climate of tension and turmoil, people such as the princess need to be more aware of where their gifts might be going. This is one of the points the U.S. task force is expected to emphasize. How many other “charities” are being milked?

“For years, individuals and charities based in Saudi Arabia have been the most important sources of funds for al-Qaida,” says a new report on terrorist financing by the U.S. Council for Foreign Relations. “And for years the Saudis have turned a blind eye.”

Adds Trudy Rubin of the Knight Ridder Newspapers: “For years, the United States also turned a blind eye, as Saudi funds financed Islamic groups that battled the Soviets in Afghanistan and later fought in Chechnya and Bosnia. Since 9-11, neither side can pretend any longer that there is no problem. The issue of Saudi funding for terrorists is poisoning U.S.-Saudi relations. Yet the Saudi government seems unable, or unwilling, to confront the issue. : What has surprised me most is the extent to which (Islamic) charities are being used to : move money to support terrorist activities.”

The princess’s gift is only one of many reports that have aroused suspicion among U.S. officials. If the Saudis choose not to be honest about their dealings in such matters, then the United States needs to bring it all into the open and place blame where it belongs.

There is good reason for the new U.S. task force to press for more Saudi Arabia aid in the war on terrorism :quot; not for the terrorists but for the battle against them. Declarations should come sooner rather than later.