Saudis try to calm fears
Another Westerner was shot dead in Riyadh today, as Saudi authorities tried to reassure foreign workers there was “no crisis” over terrorist attacks.
Saudi police said the American, who lived in the capital, was shot at around 4pm, and died shortly afterwards. A spokesman for the US Embassy said the circumstances were still being investigated.
Today’s attack came just hours after one of the Middle Eastern state’s leading ministers said in London that the terrorism situation was under control.
Dr Saleh bin Abdulaziz Al Al-shaikh, Minister for Islamic Affairs, said: “Of course it is a problem but it has not reached a stage of crisis in Saudi Arabia.
“Our assessment of the situation is that it is controllable, but because there are sleeping cells and because the terrorists live in a crowded area the Saudi forces do not want to hurt any of the local people,” he added.
Dr Al-shaikh, who was in London to visit an Islamic centre in the east of the city, also claimed that Saudi forces had already made significant advances in combating the threat.
He said: “If you look back through the efforts of the Saudi government in tackling terrorism, they have destroyed half of the terrorist force.”
Today’s shooting is the latest in a series of attacks against foreign workers in Saudi Arabia, which is generally regarded as one of the most Western-facing states in the Middle East.
BBC cameraman Simon Cumbers was killed, and the corporation’s security correspondent Frank Gardner was critically injured in a drive-by shooting in Riyadh on June 6.
An American defence contractor was also murdered in the capital just two days later.
A spokeswoman for the BBC said today that Mr Gardner’s condition remained “serious but stable”.
Dr Al-shaikh told journalists at the Saudi Embassy in London that ongoing conflict over Palestine was partly to blame for a rise in tensions.
“One of the reasons for terrorism is that some conflicts in some parts of the Middle East have not been settled.
“The conflict in the Middle East has filled many Muslims with hatred because there is an obvious bias towards Israel.”
Dr Al-shaikh was asked whether there was any truth in reports that elements of the Saudi authorities had been passing information to terrorists.
The minister replied: “We have not seen any evidence to prove what (was) said and unless we have evidence we cannot confirm or deny the allegations.”
