JEDDAH, 15 December 2006 — Sixteen more Saudi nationals detained at Guantanamo prison have been released. They landed in Riyadh yesterday morning, said Interior Minster Prince Naif.
Hours earlier at a press conference held late Wednesday following an inauguration of the Second Islamic Conference of Environment Ministers, Prince Naif ruled out the possibility of the sectarian strife in Lebanon and Iraq spilling into the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah during the Haj.
“We have taken every security precaution to contain any eventuality,” said Prince Naif.
The third group of Saud detainees from Guantanamo arrived in Riyadh after five years as “enemy noncombatants,” a term the White House created to skirt rules on the treatment of prisoners of war under the Geneva Conventions.
The 16 Saudis released are Mohammed Yahia Al-Zalai, Sulaim Salman Al-Harbi, Yousef Abdullah Al-Ribash, Sulaiman Saad Al-Qush, Jaber Jabran Al-Fifi, Ibrahim Sulaiman Al-Ribash, Abdullah Mohamed Al-Yamani, Anwar Hamdan Al-Noor, Haji Hajaj Al-Sulami, Abdulaziz Mohammed Al-Nasser, Ziad Saeed Al-Jahdali, Majed Hamad Al-Furah, Bassam Mohammed Al-Dibakhi, Saeed Ali Al-Ghamdi, Sultan Sari Al-Anazi and Abdulrahman Mohammed Khoran.
To date, 51 Saudis have been released from Guantanamo. Seventy-four still remain at the prison.
Mohammed Salman, brother of Sulaim Salman Al-Harbi, one of the 16 detainees released yesterday, said in a phone conversation with Arab News from Makkah that the family was informed this morning.
“We are getting ready as we speak to head to Riyadh,” he said, adding that the ministry is allowing family members to meet with the prisoners for 24 hours beginning today at 2:30 p.m.
Afterward, they will be investigated in an attempt to determine if they pose a threat to Saudi national security. Officials have said that returning Saudi detainees are also treated for any posttraumatic stress disorder they may have after undergoing their years-long detention and legal limbo.
Prince Naif has said that Saudi detainees will be held for any Saudi laws they may have violated.
The United States sent 29 Saudis home earlier this year. Prince Naif affirmed that the commitment to regulations and instructions of previously repatriated Guantanamo detainees played a vital role in supporting the Kingdom’s efforts.
The interior minister conveyed his appreciation to US authorities for their cooperation.
He added that efforts are ongoing to repatriate the remaining Saudi’s detainees in the near future.
While replying to a question about the names of 139 suspects arrested in Saudi Arabia in recent weeks in security operations, Prince Naif said at Wednesday’s press conference that things would be done in a transparent and comprehensive manner considering all aspects of the issue.
Responding to a question about the security of the buildings where the pilgrims have been put up, the minister said that necessary precautions have been taken for this year’s Haj.
“Surely, since that incident (the collapse of a building last year during Haj), technical committees were formed to investigate the reasons behind it. The building was not built to accommodate a large number of residents, but unfortunately it was occupied by a larger number of pilgrims than it was meant to. Besides, there was construction working going on in the vicinity of the hotel, which also led to the collapse.”
In reply to another question, Prince Naif said scholars should educate Muslim youths about the authentic Islamic doctrine and tell them to defend Islam everywhere.
