JEDDAH, 16 December — Thirty Saudi nationals are reportedly among 95 suspected members of Osama Bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network arrested in Pakistan while fleeing the Tora Bora region in Afghanistan.
Saudi Ambassador to Islamabad Ali Asiri, however, refused to confirm the report carried by Pakistan Online saying that the embassy had not been notified by concerned Pakistani agencies of the arrest of any Saudi national.
“The embassy said there were many non-Saudis who posed as Saudis using forged documents. The forgery was discovered when their documents were scrutinized by the embassy,” Al-Madinah newspaper yesterday quoted Asiri as saying.
Pakistan Online said the arrested Al-Qaeda fighters also included 10 Malaysians, six Singaporeans, six Yemenis, five South Africans, four Turks, five Britons, two Albanians, two Jordanians, two Sudanese, three Swiss, three French and one Dutch. They were arrested while entering Pakistani territory in the wake of heavy bombardment of the mountainous region by American forces.
US frees 46 Saudis: An official source at the Saudi Embassy in Washington said US authorities freed 46 Saudis who were arrested on charges of violating immigration regulations. Some of them have been deported.
The embassy said 25 of them were released on bail. The source added that 27 others are still in jails on charges of violating the country’s immigration law. They are all students and not linked to any criminal acts.
He also said three Saudis were attacked in different parts of the country in the past two weeks.
