Curbs on Thuraya

RIYADH, 4 March 2004 — The government has launched an extensive campaign to stop Thuraya satellite phones being smuggled in from the United Arab Emirates, Yemen and Qatar into the country. The satellite phone is known to have been used in the past by terrorists operating in other countries, government sources said. However, a number of them have been found among equipment seized by Saudi security forces in their clampdown on terrorists.