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| Arabia |
| Saudis acknowledge al-Qaeda infiltration into the National Guard |
| 2004-01-13 |
| Keep in mind that the Saudi National Guard is the equivalent to the royal guard, so if al-Qaeda can infiltrate that, they can whack any princes they want. Saudi Arabia has quietly acknowledged that its security forces and military have been infiltrated by Al Qaida. Saudi security sources said Al Qaida has succeeded in obtaining military equipment and uniforms for suicide operations in the kingdom. The sources said the insurgency group has also obtained either vehicles from the National Guard or its insignia, which can be imposed on non-official trucks and deceive soldiers at checkpoints. Al Qaida’s use of military and security equipment allowed insurgents to attack the Muhaya compound in Riyadh on Nov. 9. The security sources said a foiled Al Qaida attack meant to take place later that month included the use of a forged military vehicle. The sources said Al Qaida has a range of sources for military equipment. They said several tailors around Riyad who service the military and National Guard routinely sell uniforms without asking clients for identification. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #4 Mike, as I was reading this, I was thinking the same thing. This is very, very bad for the Sods. But, things are looking up for the Hashimite Kingdom of Arabia. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2004-1-13 12:37:00 PM |
| #3 ...Actually, this should be a SERIOUS "Oh, s**t' moment for those wacky Al-Sauds. A bit of a history lesson - the SNG is almost 100% Bedouin, and its leadership is descended from the Bedouin tribal leaders who rode into Riyadh eighty-something years ago with the first of the Al-Sauds to found the modern kingdom. As was mentioned, these guys are the royal guard - and they were the ONLY Saudi military unit that was 100% trusted by the family. If there's any question at all as to the loyalty of the SNG, that is an extraordinarily BAD thing for the royal family - they tend to deal with that kind of problem in ways that might just make the situation a whole lot worse. Mike |
| Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2004-1-13 11:11:48 AM |
| #2 I'm more surprised there are non-al'Qaeda in the Saudi National Guard. |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2004-1-13 8:06:44 AM |
| #1 I'm just...speechless! |
| Posted by: tu3031 2004-1-13 12:21:20 AM |