In an interview with Ahmed Al-Jarallah, Editor-in-Chief of Kuwait's Arab Times newspaper, Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz was quoted as saying on Monday that his country is making big progress in fighting terrorism.
Pointing to the recent killings of some people in Mecca, he said, "what you see currently in Saudi Arabia is our mopping up operations where we are clearing the last remaining terrorist pockets." "We have cut the heads of terrorist snakes and are aware some tails remain out there," the Abdullah said. "We will get them fast especially since all our citizens have become guards to ensure the security of the country."
Asked whether terrorism and the hunt for terrorists have affected the internal front of Saudi Arabia, its economy and development, Prince Abdullah said, "contrary to what others think, these acts have united our people under one flag. As you can see people from different parts of the country have come here to voice their resentment against terrorism and confirm their love and loyalty to the nation."
He ridiculed terrorists for wrongly assuming they could easily break the solidarity of Saudi people by resorting to ideological terrorism and misleading media propaganda.
The Saudi de-facto leader described Saudis, who were involved in terrorist attacks, as "tails of snakes," adding "they have chosen to make use of the amnesty period."
Stressing the fact people from other countries were also involved in the terrorist acts in Saudi Arabia, he said, "we have been successful in bringing the situation under control. Our people don't like to be involved in such murderous acts, which in any case is sporadic and isolated," he continued. (albawaba.com)
© 2004 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
