Saudi authorities have asked militant Islamists to surrender following the arrest of the suspected mastermind of the co-ordinated suicide bombings in Riyadh in May. Ali Abdul Rahman al-Ghamdi, also known as Abu Bakr al-Azdi, is being intensely questioned after surrendering to a Saudi assistant minister of the interior on Thursday. “All the wanted persons should surrender themselves. That is the only way because the security forces will reach them, and it is better for them to surrender themselves,” the Saudi Interior Minister, Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz, told a Saudi newspaper. Western intelligence sources have told the BBC that Ali al-Ghamdi was “al-Qaeda’s top operative in Saudi Arabia” – and his arrest was a major blow to al-Qaeda’s operations in the country. Mr Ghamdi was number two on the list of most-wanted suspects in connection with the 12 May attacks. Thirty-five people, including nine bombers, died in the attacks on compounds housing Americans and other westerners in Riyadh. The US and Saudi authorities blame the al-Qaeda network for the bombings. Full Story
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