| A Saudi cleric claimed on Friday that he had secured the return of a "senior Al Qaeda figure" from Pakistan. "A brother from Al Qaeda in Pakistan contacted me from there and asked that his name be included in the amnesty," Cleric Safar al-Hawali told Reuters, adding the man could arrive in the kingdom within days. Hawali said the authorities agreed on Friday to include the militant's name in the list of those pardoned, though Crown Prince Abdullah has rejected the idea of a formal extension. The amnesty expired late on Thursday. Al Hawali said he has also been in contact with Saleh al-Awfi, the presumed Al Qaeda leader in the kingdom, to persuade him to give himself up. Saudi authorities this week detained Awfi's wife and three children in a raid but he apparently escaped. |