Posted on 07/02/2002 10:39:31 AM PDT by gubamyster
By Molouk Y. Ba-Isa, Arab News Staff
RIYADH, 2 July — Despite the discovery of an explosive device attached to a US citizen’s vehicle in Riyadh, Americans in the Kingdom are going about their business as usual. Many US dependents had already left the Kingdom for their annual leave and are not expected back until August. For those who remain, their compounds have round-the-clock security and police patrols, so no additional security measures are deemed necessary.
According to a US Embassy statement issued on Sunday, Saudi authorities are investigating the discovery of an explosive device on the personal vehicle of an American citizen employed at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center in Riyadh. On Saturday morning, the American and his spouse discovered an unfamiliar and suspicious object attached underneath the vehicle because the object was dragging on the road as they set off to work. They reported it to the Saudi police who secured the device and removed it. Further examination by the police determined that it was an explosive device.
The US Embassy is following closely the investigation into this incident and is making inquiries with the Saudi authorities. The US Embassy reminded American citizens of the US State Department’s current Public Announcement — Middle East and North Africa Update, distributed on May 22 available at the Consular Affairs Internet Web site (http://travel.state.gov). In this announcement, the State Department warns that, “there is growing concern that individuals may be planning terrorist action against United States citizens and interests, as well as tourist sites frequented by Westerners, in the region of the Arabian Gulf, the Arabian Peninsula, and North Africa.
“In light of these reports, the US Embassy advises that prudence dictates that American citizens continue to follow good personal security practices. These include maintaining a low profile, avoiding crowds and demonstrations, varying routes and times for all required travel, and treating mail from unfamiliar sources with suspicion. With respect to vehicles, American citizens in Saudi Arabia should avoid leaving their cars unattended and keep them locked at all times. If left unattended, it is strongly advised that a thorough inspection of the vehicle should be made. The inspection should include the use of a flashlight to search underneath the car and checking under the hood and in the trunk. If any foreign objects or unfamiliar attachments are noticed in any place on, in, or under the vehicle, they should not be touched. The individual’s company representative and the police should be contacted immediately.”
The notice is posted at http://www.usembassy.state.gov/riyadh/wwwhsc52.html.
The US Embassy will be closed today for a previously scheduled long holiday weekend in commemoration of the US Independence Day, which is celebrated on July 4. According to a US Embassy spokesman, despite rumors to the contrary there are no additional security updates regarding July 4, other than those already released and posted to the embassy website.
It appears that many of the rumors circulating locally and associated with additional security risks are as a result of US-based news media reporting on additional security precautions being taken at various sites in the United States.
In a related development, on Sunday the British Embassy in Riyadh released information concerning a suspicious object found attached to the underside of a vehicle owned by a British citizen at the Al Nakheel Residence Compound in Riyadh. The Saudi police removed the object and an investigation is under way.
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