|
Prince Muhammad escapes assassination attempt
Arab News
JEDDAH: Prince Muhammad bin Naif, assistant interior minister for security affairs, escaped an assassination attempt on Thursday night when a wanted terrorist blew himself up inside the prince's house here.
The minister escaped with minor injuries in the suicide bombing that was staged by the terrorist posing as a well-wisher. The body of the terrorist, the only death in the incident, was shattered into bits and pieces.
 |
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah visited Prince Muhammad at the hospital soon after the incident to inquire about his health and safety. The king thanked God for saving the minister's life, and commended his services to the country.
The king asked Prince Muhammad why was the terrorist allowed in without proper checks, to which the prince replied, “It was a mistake.”
According to a statement issued by the Royal Court, the suicide bombing took place at 11.30 p.m. while Prince Muhammad was receiving well-wishers who came to greet him on the occasion of Ramadan at his house in Jeddah.
"Among them there was a wanted terrorist, who had previously expressed his desire to surrender himself to the prince," the statement said.
Prince Muhammad said the criminal act would only strengthen his resolve to do more to reinforce the country's security and stability.
"The wanted criminal exploded himself during security inspection," the royal court said, adding that the prince escaped the assassination attempt with minor injuries. The bomb had been fixed to his body and that was triggered when the terrorist received a call from outside, according to Al-Arabiya news channel.
"Nobody else suffered any injuries," the royal court said. The prince later left the hospital after undergoing necessary tests and treatment.
Prince Muhammad was appointed as assistant interior minister 10 years ago. He holds a degree in political science from a US university.
Prince Muhammad, who has attended advanced courses in combating terror inside and outside the Kingdom, has been in the forefront of Saudi Arabia's campaign against Al-Qaeda militants.
Last week, the Interior Ministry announced the arrest of 44 suspected militants linked to an Al-Qaeda cell. The deviants sought to recruit youths and financed their activities through donations secured through charities.
"The suspects were arrested over a period of one year. The operation began on July 20, 2008, and ended on Aug. 2 this year," said Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki.
"Forty-three of those arrested are Saudi nationals," said Al-Turki. He said that some of them had received training in the Kingdom and abroad on the use of light and heavy weapons. Some had received training on mixing and detonating explosive materials. Others received training in counterfeiting documents and identity cards. Their ages ranged between 20 and 60.
Al-Turki said 17 Kalashnikov rifles, 50 machine guns, 42 cases of ammunition and 96 remote electronic detonators were seized from the militants. The spokesman added that the detonators were located underground in two remote areas. One was in the suburbs of Qassim and the other in a valley near the city of Riyadh.
The identities of those arrested were not revealed, but Al-Turki said among them were individuals with proper technical qualifications and some with advanced university degrees. "None of those arrested figure in the list of 85 wanted militants issued in February," he said. "We found 39 magazines hidden in a secret compartment behind a concrete wall inside the home of one of the suspects," he said.
Source: Arab News
|
SPECIAL
REPORT