JEDDAH, 13 January 2003 — The Kingdom has set up a liaison office which will help repatriate dozens of Saudi nationals captured in the US-led war on terror.
An Interior Ministry official told the Saudi Press Agency yesterday that the office will follow up the cases of Saudis detained by the United States at the military base in Cuba as well as in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Chechnya and all other parts of the world.
The aim is "to bring back the detainees so they can have a free and fair trial here in the Kingdom," Dr. Saud Al-Mosaibih, director of public relations at the Interior Ministry, told the Saudi Press Agency.
Saudi officials have said that over 100 Saudi nationals are among Al-Qaeda and Taleban prisoners being held at the Guantanamo detention center in Cuba.
"The office will follow up on all consequences of Sept. 11 and their effect on some Saudi citizens abroad," Mosaibih said, adding that the office would also provide their families with information on their conditions.
He said Saudi citizens should contact telephone No. 401 4980 for information about missing relatives.
Mosaibih also revealed that the office has received letters from Saudi detainees in Guantanamo, which it has passed on to relatives.
"The relatives have also sent a number of letters to the detainees in Guantanamo through the office," he pointed out.
