Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday it had arrested an alleged mastermind of the deadly Riyadh suicide bombings along with several other suspects, as newspapers said some of those held belonged to the al-Qaeda network.
The US embassy warned that more terror attacks in the kingdom might be imminent after the three bombing attacks on May 12 at foreigners' housing compounds in the capital Riyadh which killed 34 people, including eight Americans.
"Between yesterday and today, 11 people were arrested in Medina," Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef said on Saudi state television. He said those held included three non-Saudi women, believed to be wives of suspects.
A Saudi source earlier told reporters that five suspects were arrested on Tuesday in the Muslim holy city of Medina.
"We believe that one of them is a main mastermind of the [Riyadh] blasts," the source added.
He said he could not confirm newspaper reports that the five were members of Saudi-born Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda guerrilla group, blamed for the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the US.
The daily Okaz reported that the five had been arrested at an Internet cafe and said the alleged mastermind was a Saudi who was among 19 men listed on May 7 as wanted by authorities on terrorism charges after a shoot-out with police in Riyadh.
Another paper, al-Watan, said security forces had confiscated three computers used by the suspects at the cafe.
Al-Watan said those arrested were suspected of belonging to al-Qaeda and were wanted by the security forces. It also said the suspects included the man who orchestrated the attacks.
Saudi and US officials blame al-Qaeda militants for the Riyadh blasts, which were the first to indiscriminately target civilians in the world's biggest oil exporter.
The US ambassador to Riyadh, Robert Jordan, said on Wednesday that Washington believed there was a threat of more attacks in the kingdom, the birthplace of Islam and a US ally.
"We have concerns about further attacks. We are not convinced this threat is over or [that] it is in any way diminished," Jordan told reporters at the US embassy.
"We don't believe that this is a one-time event. The threat level continues to be elevated at this time," he added.
Washington reopened its diplomatic missions in Saudi Arabia on Sunday after a four-day closure prompted by warnings of more attacks. Diplomats said the embassy was sending home around 30 non-essential staff as a precaution.
Prince Nayef said that the 11 arrests brought to 21 the number of people held in connection with the Riyadh blasts. He said six of the nine suicide bombers had been identified and that four of them had been among the 19 listed as wanted on May 7.
American intelligence agents are in Saudi Arabia to assist in the investigation.
The US embassy said the 60 agents would leave the kingdom by the end of the week and be replaced by a smaller team.
"The FBI team is likely to conclude the evidence gathering by the end of this week," Jordan said, adding that the second team would help review the evidence and conduct interrogations. He described Saudi cooperation as "superb."
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was