TEHRAN - The Pentagon has removed Saudi Arabia from the anti-terror coalition, the Saudi daily ** Al-Watan** reported on Monday.

The daily added that although U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and other senior officials in Washington have expressed satisfaction with Saudi cooperation in the campaign against terrorism, the United States has decided to remove Saudi Arabia from this coalition.

Furthermore, the U.S. State Department's annual report on human rights, which was published in Washington on Monday, sharply criticized Saudi Arabia, claiming that Riyadh does not respect human rights.

The daily **Al-Watan** further said that ever since Saudi officials have asked Washington to withdraw its military forces from the kingdom, the U.S. media have launched a smear campaign against this country and the U.S. Administration has adopted a new approach to Saudi Arabia. It stressed that the relations between Washington and Riyadh are shrouded in ambiguity.