Free Republic

Sorry there is no excerpt, but my computer is rebelling.

FBI Special Agent Richard Deslauriers told reporters Tuesday, April 16, that the probe had no leads 18 hours after two explosions blew up at the annual Boston Marathon’s finishing line, killing three people and injuring 176 – 17 critically. debkafile’s counterterrorism sources can disclose however that the investigation has in fact homed in on a suspected terror cell of three Saudi nationals, very possibly tied to Al Qaeda. The flat they share in the Revere, Massachusetts, near Boston, was searched after the questioning of one of the suspects, a Saudi student, who was hospitalized with badly burned hands. One of...

<p>Sanaa, Yemen (CNN) -- The deputy leader of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and one of the most wanted men in Saudi Arabia has been killed, a prominent jihadist announced Tuesday, though officials in the group's home base of Yemen said they had no evidence of his death.</p>

Two men suspected of being al-Qaeda members and a police officer have been killed in a shoot-out at a checkpoint in Saudi Arabia, officials say. Shots were fired after a female police officer approached a vehicle to check the identities of the passengers - two of whom were disguised as women. A third man was arrested and state media quoted an official as saying there were more weapons in the vehicle. The shooting happened in Jizan province on the southern border with Yemen. Interior Ministry spokesman General Mansur al-Turki said the suspects were wearing explosive vests and had grenades, automatic...

Interior Minister Prince Nayef of Saudi Arabia and his son, Deputy Interior Minister Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, have many enemies. For decades, the powerful and unaccountable elder Prince Nayef has “overseen” the Saudi police force; Nayef once boasted that his law enforcement agency solves 100 percent of the kingdom’s annual crimes. Al-Qaeda was quick to take credit for the suicide bombing (according to SITE). After all, it was a major public relations coup. For starters, the royals had been tricked — promised surrender and instead given a Trojan horse. Saudi’s princes pride themselves on having impenetrable personal security systems. Instead,...

A suicide bomber failed in his attempt to kill the prince who heads Saudi Arabia's anti-terrorism campaign, the first attack on a member of the royal family since the start of a wave of violence by Al-Qaeda six years ago. Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, the deputy interior minister, was meeting well-wishers on Thursday when a man blew himself up, a ministry spokesman said. Al Arabiya television showed Prince Mohammed, apparently slightly injured, meeting King Abdullah after the attack. Prince Mohammed told King Abdullah that the attacker was a wanted militant who had indicated he was going to turn himself in....

Saudi suspects seeking to revive Al Qaeda - includes 11 who attended Saudi rehab after release from Guantanamo Bay Saudi Arabia issued the list ...They include 11 who have been released from the US prison at Guantanamo Bay and have attended the kingdom's touted extremist rehabilitation program. Saudi suspects seeking to revive Al Qaeda - includes 11 who attended Saudi rehab after release from Guantanamo Bay Khaleej Times - 08 February, 2009 www.gulfinthemedia.com/index.php?id=456220&news_type=Top&lang=en One of the men on the Saudi Arabia's new most-wanted list is married to Osama bin Laden's daughter while another was involved in a plot to kill...

Alerted by Saudi and other intelligence agencies that al-Qaida planned to launch a bloody assault on Muslim pilgrims taking part in the annual pilgrimage - the Hajj - the Saudi government last week launched a huge counterterrorism operation, one of the largest in recent memory, according to U.S. intelligence officials. Over 3 million Muslims flocked to Mecca for the Hajj pilgrimage which retraces a route taken by the Prophet Mohammed 14 centuries ago. This year's event began Dec 6 under the nervous eye of Saudi security forces that included 20,000 ground forces, flights of combat helicopters and a large number...

Saudi security forces have arrested al Qaeda members suspected of planning to carry out attacks during the current haj pilgrimage, Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television said on Friday. The television quoted an unnamed security official as saying the suspects aimed to cause "security confusion" during the pilgrimage, in which more than 2.5 million Muslims are taking part. They were arrested in various cities in the kingdom days before the start of the pilgrimage on Monday, the official was quoted as saying. The report did not say how many were being held.

Saudi Arabia has begun setting up a 35,000-strong security force to protect its oil infrastructure from potential attacks, the Financial Times reported. The force already numbers about 5,000 personnel. They are being trained in the use of new surveillance equipment, countermeasures and crisis management under a programme managed by US defence group Lockheed Martin (nyse: LMT), the newspaper quoted a Saudi adviser as saying. The move underlines the kingdom's growing concern about its oil installations after threats from al-Qaeda to attack facilities in the Gulf, as well as rising tensions between Iran and the US. Lockheed said it did not...

Saudi Arabia has begun setting up a 35,000-strong security force to protect its oil infrastructure from potential attacks. The move underlines the kingdom’s growing concern about its oil installations after threats from al-Qaeda to attack facilities in the Gulf, as well as rising tensions between Iran and the US. The force already numbers about 5,000 personnel, a Saudi adviser said on Sunday. They are being trained in the use of new surveillance equipment, countermeasures and crisis management under a programme managed by US defence group Lockheed Martin, according to the Middle East Economic Survey in Nicosia. The recruits are learning...

RIYADH: Four militants arrested in Jeddah this week were part of a group of 34 men rounded up in an effort to prevent a resurgence of Al Qaeda violence, the Saudi interior ministry said yesterday. The four Islamist radicals surrendered on Monday after Saudi security forces besieged the building where they had an apartment in the Red Sea port. "Security work led to the arrest of 34 people of different nationalities in Makkah, Madinah, Riyadh and Jeddah because they belonged to the 'deviant group' and had links to escapees from the Malaz prison," a statement on official news agency SPA...

RIYADH (Reuters) - Four militants arrested in the Saudi city of Jeddah this week were part of a group of 34 men rounded up in an effort to prevent a resurgence of al Qaeda violence, the Saudi interior ministry said on Saturday. The four Islamist radicals surrendered on Monday after Saudi security forces besieged the building where they had an apartment in the Red Sea port. "Security work led to the arrest of 34 people of different nationalities in Mecca, Medina, Riyadh and Jeddah because they belonged to the 'deviant group' and had links to escapees from the Malaz prison,"...

Terror suspects 'flee Saudi jail' The Interior Ministry said the fugitives were 'religious extremists' Seven terror suspects have escaped from prison in Saudi Arabia, according to the country's Interior Ministry. Saudi-owned television Al Arabiya said the fugitives - six Saudis and one Yemeni - were linked to al-Qaeda. Saudi Arabia has been battling a campaign of violence by al-Qaeda aimed at toppling the pro-US monarchy. The suspects fled Malaz prison in the capital Riyadh, where they had been held over "security related issues," an Interior Ministry statement said. The term is used by Saudi authorities to describe terrorism charges. Radical...

Six militants were killed and one was arrested in a shootout with security forces in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Friday, Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television said. "The security operation is still going on" in a western district of the capital, the satellite channel said. The television quoted security sources as saying the militants were on the verge of launching unspecified attacks when the shootout occurred. It gave no further details. Al Qaeda-linked militants have been carrying out a three-year campaign against the pro-Western monarchy, with attacks on residences housing foreigners as well as state and economic targets and shootouts with...

Saw this the other day. Its quite a dramatic, very interesting series of excerpts from a forthcoming book by a BBC journalist. A word of warning - it is extremely long hence the seperating lines. Although I can find soem criticism of is, it does reveal a chilling insight into the actions of radical Islamists. ------------------------------ The day I was shot When BBC correspondent Frank Gardner lay helpless on a Saudi street, blood pouring from his bullet-riddled body, he cursed himself for getting too close to Al-Qaeda. Here he recounts that terrible day --------------------------------------- ‘Do you have time for some...

Interior Minister Prince Nayef announced on Saturday that Saudi Arabia had prevented about 90 per cent of planned terror attacks planned against the kingdom."This is thanks to God and to detailed security effort and continuous tracking of terrorist cells," Interior Minister Prince Nayef told Al Hayat, a Saudi-owned Pan-Arab daily. Saudi forces this week announced the arrest of 40 suspected militants and the seizure of a huge arms cache. Eight people connected to a foiled attack on the world’s largest oil processing facility, were among the 40 arrested. On February 24 suicide bombers in two explosive laden cars attempted to...

The Will of Al-Qaeda Commander in Saudi Arabia Fahd Al-Farraj The following are excerpts from a recorded will of Al-Qaeda Commander in Saudi Arabia Fahd Al Farraj, aired on www.alsaha.com on March 17, 2006. TO VIEW THIS CLIP: http://www.memritv.org/search.asp?ACT=S9&P1=1078. The will of Commander Fahd bin Farraj Al-Jweir Al-Farraj, one of the commanders of the Al-Qaeda organization in the Arabian Peninsula.Fahd Al-Farraj in training in the Arabian Peninsula.The Battar Camp.Drive the polytheists out of the Arabian PeninsulaFahd Al Farraj: "I want to clarify and to reiterate the goals we wish to accomplish, with Allah's help, and to respond to some doubts...

An often overlooked theater in the war against al-Qaeda’s global network is right in the heart of the Middle East on the Arabian Peninsula. Saudi Arabia is a troubled ally in the War on Terror, as their internal politics and government support of the radical Wahabi strain of Islam often conflicts with fighting al-Qaeda’s support mechanisms within the country. However their efforts killing or capturing al-Qaeda members in the kingdom cannot be questioned. This week, Saudi security forces killed two senior members of al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia, Abdel-Rahman al-Mutab and Mohammed al-Suwailmi. They were the number four and seven on...

KUWAIT (Reuters) - A Kuwaiti court on Tuesday sentenced to death six suspected militants linked to al Qaeda for bloody attacks in the country. The six were among 37 Islamists on trial as members of the "Peninsula Lions" group believed to be linked to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda in Iraq and Saudi Arabia. They include 25 Kuwaitis, seven stateless Arabs, two Jordanians, a Saudi, an Australian and a Somali. A Reuters reporter who was at the court said none of the defendants were present when the verdict was announced. Other suspects received jail terms of between four months to...