Saudi Arabia recently fired or transferred some 2,000 high school teachers who the Saudi Interior Ministry described as extremist and potential supporters of terrorism, reports The Media Line. The Saudi government plans to hire 23,221 teachers before the beginning of the next academic year in September.

"Everyone knows about these teachers,” said Eman Al-Nafjan, a former teacher. “It used to be very common that teachers were extremists. But this has drastically decreased. Thanks to the education ministry program, word got out that it’s not okay to teach hatred anymore and they fired many teachers.”

The Muslim nation is grappling with the issues of extremism in education. Recently, the government introduced new educational curricula, removing anti-Christian and anti-American references from textbooks. During public appearances, King Abdullah reiterates the necessity of eradicating the influence of religious extremism in Saudi Arabia.

Dr. Mustafa Alani, Senior Advisor and Director of Terrorism Studies at the Gulf Research Center in Dubai, declared that this measure demonstrates King Abdullah's keenness to be at the forefront of reforming the next generations, starting with the educational system.

Saudi Arabia aims to eradicate extremist religious instruction, which authorities believe help expand and increase terror cells within the country, according to Haaretz.

"Those with extremist views are citizens who have the right to earn a living, and in fact they are victims no less than their students, but they have to be kept at a distance from anyone they can have an influence on," said the Saudi writer Abdullah bin Bakhit in an interview with the Al-Arabiya television network.

The Media Line also notes that other Saudi counter-terrorism efforts have been implemented at judicial and financial levels.

“[The king] is facing resistance from the old generation,” Alani said. “So to supervise the educational strategy, he put his son-in-law in charge as a major sign, because the previous minister was unable to do the work.” Offshoot groups or other organizations inspired by Al-Qaeda are trying to undermine the monarchy in Saudi Arabia, which has faced criticism because of its alliance with the West, especially the United States.

Mansour al-Turki, spokesman for the Interior Ministry, which initiated the program, said that his ministry had given instructions for a new form for assessing teachers. The evaluation included questions about their beliefs and viewpoints, in order to identify the candidates who might instruct their students about the extremist streams of Islam before they are selected, adds Haaretz.

Saudi Arabia has been waging its own battle against terrorist organizations since the attack in the grand mosque in Mecca in 1979.