RIYADH, 13 July 2003 — Outgoing security chief General Asaad Al-Fraih yesterday denied his transfer was related to the May 12 triple suicide bombings in Riyadh that left 35 people dead.
“I know that this is totally untrue,” Fraih told Okaz newspaper when asked if he was replaced because of “security circumstances” in the wake of the attacks. “I had a time limit and I have exceeded that time limit,” Fraih added.
A royal decree issued by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd on Friday promoted Said ibn Abdullah Al-Qahtani, the police chief of Makkah, to the rank of lieutenant general and appointed him to replace Fraih, who in turn was named adviser to Interior Minister Prince Naif.
Fraih said he had not been sidelined. “I do not consider my new job being sidelined. I am not expected to stay in position forever. I was the director general of the Passports Department and then security chief. I am not expected to stay in the same position forever, and there are better men who are qualified to take over,” he said.
He had praise for his successor. “He is the best choice. He is a hard-working man,” he said.
Okaz pressed the general on the reasons for his transfer, but he replied: “I am a person who serves his country. You would have to ask officials about the transfer. I am very satisfied in any position I am in because I know that I will serve my country.” “The country will not be affected whether Asaad stays or leaves,” he added.
The new appointment comes amid a crackdown by security forces on militants, including the July 3 killing of the alleged mastermind of the bombings in Riyadh.
