RIYADH, 25 July 2005 — Interior Minister Prince Naif described the explosions that happened in Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt as a “very ugly crime” that targeted groups and areas where innocent people gather to relax and find peace.
“Enough about condemning,” he told Al-Riyadh newspaper in an interview yesterday. “We are now looking forward as an Arab and Islamic world to think and unite in fighting terrorism. These terrorist activities are targeting Islam and peace between people and countries of the world. If we do not move together, then terrorism will continue.”
Prince Naif demanded that the international community should cooperate on a scientific level and get to know the source of evil and extract it by its roots.
He referred to Crown Prince Abdullah’s vision to carry out the goals of the international center to fight terrorism. “We should not, however, stand and condemn. We want researchers to find the obstacles that stand in the way of activating international cooperation to limit terrorism.”
Of the Saudi casualties resulting from the blasts in Egypt, he said that up until now he had no indication that there were Saudi deaths.
He pointed out that there are groups that used citizens of the country to carry out destruction against innocent targets. This matter was discussed at the meeting of interior ministers in Turkey recently.
Prince Naif talked to families whose members joined these deviant groups in the name of jihad and advised them that their wards might be deceived by the terrorists’ false claims.
“If you suspect that your son might be getting involved with these groups, hand him over to the authorities to save him,” he told the families. “We only want the best for our people and to prevent them from engaging in terrorist activities.”
On the question that some people fear torture of their sons and relatives by security authorities, he said, “We don’t use torture. We work to rehabilitate them. We have to be honest; there is no punishment without a crime. There is no punishment without court decision.”
