JEDDAH, 9 August 2003 — Saudi Arabia yesterday released five Britons, a Canadian and a Belgian convicted of carrying out a wave of bombings in the Kingdom in 2000 and early 2001.

In a statement, the Saudi Embassy in London said the seven had been granted clemency by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd following appeals from their families, in line with Islamic law.

“King Fahd has ordered that the sentence served by these prisoners be reduced, that the time already spent in prison is to be deemed sufficient punishment, and that they are to be set free,” the statement said.

The men were accused of carrying out several bombings in the Kingdom, including a Nov. 17, 2000 attack that killed Briton Christopher Rodway. Several other Western expatriates working in the Kingdom were wounded in separate attacks.

Salah Al-Hejailan, a solicitor for the Britons, paid tribute to those who worked to secure their release.

“We applied for clemency five months ago, and I’m pleased that that has been granted due to the good consideration of the Saudi government, the superb efforts of our foreign minister and, on the side of the UK government, the British ambassador to Riyadh.

“They have done an excellent job in securing clemency.

“Having said that, my clients have insisted all along that they are not admitting guilt,” he added.

“They rejected the concept of plea bargains but at the same time, to be fair to them, they asked for clemency and the merciful consideration of the authorities,” he said.

“The file is closed from the Saudi point of view,” Al-Hejailan said.

Canada welcomed the release of Canadian national William Sampson. “I am pleased to confirm the release earlier today of Mr. William Sampson, a Canadian citizen who has been detained for over two and a half years in Saudi Arabia,” Canadian Foreign Minister Bill Graham said.

“This marks the end of an extremely difficult period for Mr. Sampson and his family. This morning, I spoke with members of his immediate family to confirm William’s release, and to express my sympathy and encouragement as they endeavor to put this long ordeal behind them,” Graham said in a statement.

Sampson, who was born British but emigrated to Canada, and Alexander “Sandy” Mitchell, from Glasgow were convicted of planting a car bomb that killed Rodway. The other Britons — James Cottle, Peter Brandon, Les Walker and James Patrick Lee — were serving 12-year jail sentences.

The Belgian, Raf Schyvens, had also confessed on television alongside Sampson and Mitchell.