Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Abdul-Aziz, the de facto ruler of the kingdom, said the Saudi people dealt with the recent Riyadh ombing attacks "in the true spirit of faith and patriotism as well as a sense of high national responsibility." In an interview, published Wednesday by the Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Siyassah, the Saudi leader affirmed that the the kingdom's leadership "will not have mercy on the perpetrators (of these attacks) and those who sympathize with them, and those who cover up for them."
Crown Prince Abdullah stressed that the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the United States as well as between their peoples is "extremely good." On this issue, he added that the two nations held identical views that there were some persons, notably in the mass media, who try to harm this relationship. Abdullah said that the ties with Washington were never 'tense' throughout history.
In reply to a question about Riyadh attacks, Abdullah described the explosions as "a satanic act," and said they were contradictory to Islam, religion and morality. Abdullah stressed the bombings were carried out by "Satans of deviated thinking," who promised that those who kill innocent people would go to paradise. He called on other Arab countries to fight extremism. "But, what bothers me is what is happening in Arab countries and on a larger scale."
"Moreover, I am wondering what are the sins of these elderly people, young ones and children of different nationalities, who were killed in these blasts in our country," he noted.
"We in the Kingdom are capable...of dealing with what happened and will overcome it with wisdom," the Saudi leader stated. "As to whom these people are, some say they belong to Al-Qaeda, but I don't have accurate information that confirms it," he said. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
