![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() |
![]() |
You are in: World: Middle East | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]()
|
![]() |
Sunday, 4 February, 2001, 23:21 GMT
Westerners confess to Saudi bombs
![]() Alexander Mitchell looked nervous as confessed
Saudi Arabian television has shown pictures of a British man, a Canadian and a Belgian confessing their involvement in a bombing campaign in the kingdom.
One man was killed and at least five people were injured when two bombs exploded in Riyadh. There was no mention of who issued the orders, or the bombers' motive. The Canadian, William Sampson, and the Belgian, Raaf Schifte, were also quoted as admitting their involvement.
Another Briton, Christopher Rodway died in the attack. Mr Mitchell said that he and the two other men were all involved in the second car bombing on 22 November, which injured three Britons and an Irish woman. If convicted of the bombings, the men will face execution by the sword under Saudi law.
Motive unclear The men also described how they planted the explosives in the two cars and used remote control devices to detonate them. They also pointed out the location of the victims' homes and the sites of the blasts on a street map. Mr Schifter said he was only involved in the second bombing after he had overheard Mr Mitchell and Mr Sampson discussing the first blast.
Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef said on television before the apparent confessions were aired that authorities knew who "the source" for the explosives was and would reveal further details at a later stage. The Saudi authorities have been playing down speculation of a political motive for the bombings, and have suggested that they may be linked with illegal trading in alcohol. Anti-western connection A Saudi dissident based in London, Dr Saad Al-Faqih, says he believes the car bombs were planted by small local groups with a grudge against the West. He says they do not have the resources to mount a major attack like the one on a US warship in Aden harbour in October and so go for softer targets such as British expatriates. A spokeswoman from the UK Foreign Office said British diplomats had not been forewarned of the broadcast nor of the confessions themselves. Speaking late on Sunday, she said: "We are currently seeking official confirmation of what was alleged. We do not expect any further updates tonight."
|
![]() |
See also:
![]() Internet links:
![]() The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top Middle East stories now:
![]() ![]() Links to more Middle East stories are at the foot of the page.
![]() |
![]() |
Links to more Middle East stories
|
![]() |
![]() |
^^ Back to top News Front Page | World | UK | UK Politics | Business | Sci/Tech | Health | Education | Entertainment | Talking Point | In Depth | AudioVideo ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To BBC Sport>> | To BBC Weather>> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- © MMIII | News Sources | Privacy |