RIYADH, 6 February 2005 — A total of 221 people, including 92 suspected militants, have been killed in terror attacks in the Kingdom over the past two years, Interior Minister Prince Naif said here yesterday.
Addressing the first session of the counterterrorism international conference in Riyadh, he also said Saudi security forces were successful in foiling 52 terrorist operations.
“The Kingdom witnessed 22 criminal acts including bombings, attacks and abductions over the past two years, in which 90 Saudi civilians and expatriates were killed and 507 were injured,” Prince Naif said, giving for the first time an overall toll for a wave of Al-Qaeda-led attacks in the country.
“Thirty-nine members of the security forces were martyred and 213 injured, while 92 from the deviant group were killed and 17 injured,” he explained.
Damage to property and installations from the attacks exceeded SR1 billion ($266 million), he added.
Prince Naif, who is chairman of the conference, said the four-day event was aimed at strengthening international cooperation in the fight against terrorism.
“This conference will focus on explaining the roots of terrorism as well as its culture and ideologies. It will also explore the link between the scourge and money laundering, and arms and drugs smuggling,” he said.
Prince Naif said the conference was a golden opportunity to exchange experience and expertise by countries in their fight against terrorism and in identifying terrorist organizations.
“As you know, terrorism is not a new thing. Communities have been suffering from it since time immemorial. But today it has become an organized crime. So the international community is in dire need of strengthening cooperation to confront terrorism and dry its sources of finance,” the minister told the delegates.
Prince Naif rejected Western moves to link terrorism with Islam. “Terrorism is an international phenomenon and not linked with any religion or society or culture. Saudi Arabia is one of the victims of terrorism,” he explained.
Prince Naif said the terrorist attacks in the Kingdom had nothing to do with Islam. “The claim that the attacks were motivated by faith is false. They are followers of deviant thoughts,” he said of Al-Qaeda sympathizers.
The minister commended the support extended by all sectors of Saudi society to the government in the fight against terror. “Terrorism is a product of deviant thoughts and all societies must join hands with security agencies to confront this scourge,” he said.
He also noted the efforts of Arab countries in fighting terrorism. “The Council of Arab Interior Ministers was the first to adopt an agreement to fight terrorism,” he said.
