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Arabia

Al Qaeda in Iran Suspect Surrenders to Saudi Authorities

2009-09-04

[Asharq al-Aswat] Asharq Al-Awsat- The Saudi Interior Ministry's list of 85 most wanted suspects being sought abroad has been reduced to just 80 suspects, after the Interior Ministry announced yesterday that one of the suspects on the list had handed himself into the authorities. The suspect is 36-year old Fawwaz al-Otaibi, and information indicates that he has been a member of Al Qaeda in Iran for over a year. Betcha he couldn't find even a low-level prince to meet with him. Waitaminit: "Al Qaeda in Iran"?? Fawwaz al-Otaibi is the fourth suspect from the list of 85 to surrender himself to the Saudi authorities. The families of these 4 suspects all played a significant role in convincing their children to leave the ranks of Al Qaeda and return to Saudi Arabia. A statement issued by the Saudi Interior Ministry yesterday announced that al-Otaibi had surrendered himself to the government. The statement went on to say that this surrender "had taken place with the assistance of his family who contacted him and expressed their desire to help him to return home. The family arranged and facilitated this return, and he was reunited with them as soon as he arrived in Saudi Arabia. He was also permitted to perform the Umrah on Tuesday evening, the eleventh day of the Holy month of Ramadan. This announcement came less than a week after Al Qaeda attempted to exploit the Interior Ministry's open-door policy to militants wishing to repent and surrender themselves. This resulted in the failed assassination attempt on the life of Assistant Minister of the Interior for Security Affairs, Prince Mohammed Bin Naif. Security spokesman for the Saudi Interior Ministry, Major General Mansour al-Turki informed Asharq Al-Awsat that following this attack, [Interior Ministry] officials do not assume that all those wishing to surrender themselves have "bad intentions." General al-Turki also revealed that the Saudi Arabian security authorities had provided Fawwaz al-Otaibi and his family with special accommodation, where he was able to receive visitors, as well as perform the Umrah with his family. The Interior Ministry's security spokesman also told Asharq Al-Awsat that al-Otaibi would be treated in accordance with the procedures in place for such cases [where a suspect surrenders himself to the authorities]. General al-Turki said al-Otaibi handing himself into the authorities would be taken into consideration when deciding his fate. Major General Mansour Al-Turki also renewed the Interior Ministry's invitation to the suspects to repent the ideology that has led them astray and surrender themselves to the authorities, and that this would be taken into consideration by the court. According to information obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, Fawwaz al-Otaibi is suspected by the Saudi authorities of being a member of Al Qaeda, and departing Saudi Arabia to join the Al Qaeda ranks in Iran. Information indicates that al-Otaibi was last seen in Iran, having arrived there via the UAE in late August or early September of last year. Al-Otaibi is one of 35 suspects on the list of 85 who were last seen either on Iranian soil, or in the Pakistani -- Afghan -- Iranian triangle. Al Qaeda members in Iran are reputedly led by Salah al-Qarawi AKA Nijm. According to information obtained by Asharq Al-Awsat, the Al Qaeda members in Iran are reportedly planning to attack Saudi Arabian or Jordanian interests, and some of these members are planning to return to Saudi Arabia in order to undertake these operations personally. Other Al Qaeda members present in Iran are planning to join the new group of [Al Qaeda] fighters who are present in Yemen.

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Arabia

Family Denounces Kuwaiti Terror Suspect

2005-02-01

Relatives of a suspected Islamic militant ringleader arrested during deadly clashes in the capital publicly distanced themselves from him Tuesday, saying he and his cohorts should be relegated "to the dustbin of history." Amer al-Enezi was identified as the key figure among six alleged militants arrested after firefights that erupted during raids of suspected hideouts in the capital. Five suspects and a bystander were killed. A previously unknown group, the Brigades of Martyr Abdulaziz al-Moqrin, promised to carry on its fight against the Kuwaiti government and the United States despite al-Enezi's arrest, according to a statement that surfaced Tuesday on a Web site known for posting Islamic militant content. "Don't think even the thought that we are finished following the arrest of Sheik Amer Khlaif al-Enezi, God grant him freedom. We have only begun," the group said, addressing Kuwaiti state security. "God willing, the raids will include you. You will regret it, you pigs of Al Sabah (the ruling family in Kuwait), you servants of the Americans," said the statement, also warning of attacks on U.S. troops based in the country, a close ally of Washington. The brigades were named after Abdelaziz al-Moqrin, the former head of al-Qaida in Saudi Arabia who was killed in a police shootout last year. There was no way to verify the statement's authenticity. Al-Enezi's father, Khlaif al-Enezi, and scores of other relatives signed a statement denouncing him. The statement, published in Kuwaiti newspapers Tuesday, described the suspects as a "gang that lost the way and was lured by the devil." A brother of Amer, Nasser Khlaif al-Enezi, died in a gunbattle Sunday that also killed a policeman and a bystander dead. "May God be our witness, we have no relation with their deeds, and may they go to the dustbin of history for what they have committed," the statement said. The relatives said they join all other Kuwaitis and the government in trying to "safeguard the stability of dear and just Kuwait." Public denunciations from the relatives of militants arrested, killed or wanted by governments in the region are not uncommon, particularly in Saudi Arabia, which has faced a far deadlier campaign of violence than Kuwait. In Saudi Arabia, the denounciations are a significant part of Saudi Arabia's official efforts to steer youths away from militancy. The government has provided little information on al-Enezi. A resident of the tribal city of al-Jahra told The Associated Press that he appeared to be in his 30s and used to preach at a local mosque, exhorting young men to attack Americans, Kuwaiti security forces and even moderate Muslim clerics. The resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said al-Enezi was fired from the mosque at least six months ago. Sheik Nawwaf Al Ahmed Al Sabah, Kuwait's interior minister, said the suspects targeted Monday were part of "an organized terror group," but he said their aims and their backers would only be revealed by further investigation. Sheik Salem Al Ali Al Sabah, the head of Kuwait's National Guard, has previously linked some local militants to al-Qaida. The militants' Web statement appealed to Kuwaitis to stay away from places where "infidel soldiers" congregate and said any loss of innocent lives would be the fault of the Kuwaiti government for allying itself with the United States and allowing U.S. bases in the country. "God knows we didn't come to fight you or terrorize you, but to fight the infidel soldiers who are occupying your land," the statement said. Monday's raid was the fourth in three weeks and reflected a new sense of urgency in the battle to crush Islamic extremists in Kuwait. About 30 Kuwaiti and Saudi suspects have been arrested since Jan. 10. After Monday's raid, Kuwait's prime minister, Sheik Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah, called for the "removal of this cancer before it spreads," the state-owned Kuwait News Agency reported. The government crackdown began when the father of a Muslim extremist told police his son had befriended a group of militants and disappeared. The son, Fawwaz al-Otaibi, was killed Jan. 10 when authorities tried to arrest him as he returned a rented car that the U.S. Embassy said he had planned to use to attack Westerners. Several accomplices fled in another car. Ensuing raids targeted al-Otaibi's accomplices, authorities said.

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Arabia

What's Going on in Kuwait? A Summary

2005-02-01

Police burst into suspected terrorist hideouts throughout a tranquil suburb Monday, arresting a reputed terror boss and setting off a ferocious gunbattle that killed at least four of his followers and a bystander. The raid — the fourth in three weeks — reflected a new sense of urgency in the battle to crush Islamic extremists deeply opposed to the presence of U.S. forces in this oil-rich emirate. Kuwait's prime minister, Sheik Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah, called for the "uprooting of this phenomenon and the removal of this cancer before it spreads," Faisal al-Hajji, the acting information minister, told the state-owned Kuwait News Agency on Monday. Kuwait beefed up security in late December around vital infrastructure, including oil installations, following terror attacks in Saudi Arabia, and soon after the government began conducting raids against suspected militants. The first two, on Jan. 10 and Jan. 15, sparked clashes that killed two suspects and two police officers. On Sunday, security forces fought with militants in a residential district of Kuwait City in violence that killed three — a militant, a police officer, and a bystander. Until this month, militants had only struck at U.S. military targets, and the spilling of Kuwaiti blood deeply upset many here. Concerned citizens soon began tipping off police to hidden caches of weapons and explosives, authorities said. In Monday's raid, which Interior Ministry spokesman Lt. Col. Adel al-Hashshash called a "spectacular success," police arrested six suspected militants, including alleged ringleader Amer Khlaif al-Enezi. The government said four militants and a bystander were killed, but Kuwait TV reported Monday night that one of the arrested militants, who was wounded in the fighting, had died. It was not known if any suspected insurgents escaped. The government provided little information on al-Enezi, but a resident of the tribal city of al-Jahra told The Associated Press that he used to preach at a local mosque, exhorting young men to attack Americans, Kuwaiti security forces and even moderate Muslim clerics. The resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the preacher, in his 30s, was fired more than six months ago. The interior minister, Sheik Nawwaf Al Ahmed Al Sabah, said the suspects targeted Monday were part of "an organized terror group," but said their aims and their backers would only be revealed by investigations. Sheik Salem Al Ali Al Sabah, the head of Kuwait's National Guard, has previously linked some local militants to al-Qaida. The fighting early Monday began when police chased militants from scattered hideouts in Mubarak Al Kabir, a middle-class residential neighborhood south of Kuwait City, according to a police statement. The fighters took refuge in a house and a gunbattle broke out, police said. Kuwait TV footage showed the house's windows shattered and its walls pocked with holes. Bodies lay face down on the roof in pools of blood and a helicopter hovered ahead. A bearded man lay on his back, hands tied and shivering. Guns and ammunition clips were scattered on a staircase. The battle was only the latest part of a government crackdown that began when the father of a Muslim extremist told police his son had befriended a group of militants and disappeared. The son, Fawwaz al-Otaibi, was then killed in the Jan. 10 operation. Several accomplices fled in another car. The ensuing raids targeted al-Otaibi's accomplices, authorities said. Kuwait, unlike neighboring Saudi Arabia, has not suffered terrorist attacks on residential or government buildings. Extremists operating since 2002 have targeted the U.S. military, killing one U.S. Marine and a U.S. civilian contracted to the military. The U.S. Embassy has said that a building housing Westerners had been targeted. Kuwait TV said one of the suspects killed Monday was a Saudi, and the three others were stateless Arabs (Palestinians?) who have lived in Kuwait without acquiring citizenship. One of those killed in a previous shootout was Saudi, and several of some 30 suspects in custody were also Saudi. Kuwait has been a major Washington ally since the 1991 U.S.-led war that liberated it from a seven-month Iraqi occupation under Saddam Hussein. Oman, which has yet to be hit by terror attacks, said Sunday it had arrested members of an organization that threatened national security. Earlier reports said the government had arrested more than 100 suspected extremists following unconfirmed reports they planned to target a shopping and cultural festival.

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