The weekend carnage in Khobar came less than a month after Saudi Arabia vowed to "strike with an iron fist" against militants who carried out attacks and said it was making every effort to protect foreigners.

Such assurances have been heard before, but whether they will cut much ice with the foreign workers on whom the kingdom depends is another matter.

Since the Riyadh bombings on May 12 last year, in which 35 people died, including nine attackers, the Saudi authorities have rounded up hundreds of suspects, seized numerous weapons caches and fought gun battles with Islamic militants. Yet the attacks show no sign of halting.

The ability of suspects to escape when cornered, and the heavy casualties suffered by security forces, has also raised doubts about the competence of the authorities.

"The credibility of the Saudi statements about having the situation under control are looking very, very weak at the moment. The whole confidence in their security apparatus is getting lower and lower as we speak," said Tim Ripley, a research associate at Centre of Defence and International Strategic Studies at Lancaster University, in England.

The first serious attacks on housing compounds in the capital last May infuriated many Saudis who complained that, despite plenty of warnings, there had been little or no attempt to step up security.

It was not until four days after the event that security around the compounds visibly improved.

The Interior Minister, Prince Nayef, then bumbled through a press conference where he announced that a number of people had been arrested.

When asked how many arrests there had been, he gave three different answers and had to be prompted by an official before he could get it right.

The prince, who has run the ministry for almost 30 years, should have been forced to resign by now, but he is virtually unsackable because of his position in the royal family.

The Saudi militants, though, present a formidable challenge to any security system.

They are difficult to detect because they tend to work in small, unconnected cells, and they prefer death to arrest - ideally causing as many casualties as possible before they die.

Although their rhetoric is directed against "infidels" and "crusaders", in practice their attacks are less specific and many of their victims have been Muslims.

They are engaged in a struggle for the heart and soul of Islam by seeking to wrest control of its birthplace from the Saudi royals, whom they regard as effete and corrupt - a view that many non-militants would share.

Since the Saudi economy relies heavily on foreign workers, attacking them, regardless of their religion, meshes neatly with the militants' strategic objectives.

The weekend attacks will reverberate far beyond Saudi Arabia's borders - particularly in Washington, where rising oil prices could become a factor in the presidential election.

The Guardian

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http://www.alharamain.org/EN/Contents.aspx?AID=8

Funds for Al Qaeda aka Al Haramain

	Thursday, 03 June 2004 00:01: AM | الموقع العربي

Our Activites

Author: --

A Brief Synopsis Of Al-Haramain Foundation Activities With the Name of Allah the Most Merciful and Provider of Mercy Most Outstanding Achievments: By the grace of Allah the Mighty and Sublime, and thereafter due to the assistance of the charitable benefactors who support the foundation, numerous important activities and projects have been actualized. The most important being: Construction of more than 1,299 masjids whether small at the cost of 30,000 Saudi Riyals up to a large center costing 2,000,000 Riyals. The foundation supervises the construction of masjids along with their completion with furnishings, sound equipment, water coolers and other materials. In addition the Masjid Committee sets up along with the Da'wah Committee the assignment of imams and muedhins for the masjid and memorizers of the Noble Qur'aan. The sponsoring of more than 3,000 callers to Islam. The foundation sponsors them with monthly salaries and for their touring different localities to teach the people good and to warn them from wrongs. Additionally the Dawah Committee operates more than twenty orphanages. The number of orphans sponsored in them is over 7,000. They are provided food, drink, clothing, education and medical care. The foundation has placed importance on printing the Qur'aan and its meaning in English and other languages as it has with printing books and da'wah pamphlets and has distributed more than 20 million books and pamphlets. The foundation has sent individuals, centers and universities books, scholarly reference works and libraries. More than three million postal letters and packages calling people to Allah. The foundation implements a 'Feeding the Fasters" program on a yearly basis in various places around the world. A total of nearly thirty million meals have been distributed in past years. The foundation provides assistance and food to afflicted Muslims around the world and has distributed hundreds of tons of foodstuffs to the needy in Somalia, Kenya, Bosnia, Kosova, Chechnya, Burma, Albania, Ethiopia, Sudan, Bangladesh, Indonesia and elsewhere. The foundation implements tens of projects yearly for the provision of drinking water and digging wells. The foundation cared for the poor and needy inside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and has spent more than sixty million riyals in cash assistance and otherwise specifically for the poor and the sick as well as stipends for students inside the Kingdom along with construction of masjids and their fitting with refrigeration and other requirements. Contributions to domestic dawah activities such as giving prizes in competitions for the memorization and recitation of the Noble Qur'aan in the Kingdom and distribution of thousands of da'wah booklets and pamphlets. The foundation has equipped hospitals and health centers with required medical instruments and machinery, set up medical camps and vaccination campaigns. The foundation has taken care to know of the important current affairs of the Muslims, especially those crises in places like Chechnya, Palestine and Indonesia; famine in Ethiopia and Chad and it has played a major role in positively affecting the situations of the Muslims. The foundation implements yearly a slaughtering project for sacrificial animals around the world and has completed the processing of one hundred thirty thousand five hundred sacrificial animals up to 1423. The foundation has shown special care for the Muslim women and has embarked upon providing Islamic hijab The foundation has distributed winter blankets and clothing and hundreds of thousand of blankets has well as clothing has been distributed among Muslims in Chechnya, Albania, Kosova, Bosnia and Jordan. Womens' Branch Authority was granted by His Eminence the General Supervisor of the foundation to open the Women's Branch of the foundation in Riyadh. This section is administered by a group of sisters who volunteer their services. The work of the center focuses on establishing lessons and lectures as well as receiving donations from charitable sisters along with follow up of the condition of needy families. The foundation indeed established the building of a permanent headquarters for the women near to the administrative headquarters of the foundation at the cost of nearly five million riyals which was given in charity by a generous donator. May Allah reward him with good. Enterprise for Tijaaratur-Raabihah (Profitable Business) The first seed planted by the Resource Development Department of Al-Haramain Foundation which has borne good fruit and unequaled success. This project has put forth ten charitable projects under its auspices from which the various committees of the foundation gain support for their dawah services and assistance to the Muslims. The projects that are supported by Tijaratur-Raabihah are: Continuous Charity for building endowments and rental for the benefit of foundation projects Calling to Allah through good messages Building masjids Providing water supply to entire villages Sponsorship of orphans "The One Who Points To Good Is Like The One Who Does It" established to promote the projects of the foundation Sponsoring Islamic Callers Supporting the circles for memorizing the Noble Qur'aan inside and outside the Kingdom Treating the sick inside and outside the Kingdom Calling to Allah through the Internet to Muslims and others The Prophet (sallallaahu 'alaihi wa sallam) stated, 'When the child of Adam dies all his deeds cease except three…' and he mentioned one of them as 'sadaqatun jaariyah, 'a continuous charity'. In accord with that, the foundation has established the Committee for Continuous Charity which represents projects which yield income such as endowments, the printing of books and investments. The committee has accomplished its first endowment project, namely that under the name of the eminent scholar, Imam Abdul-Azeez Ibn Baz (may Allah have mercy upon his soul). Then a second project was initiated called the Tawheed Endowment. The Committee has also funded a number of investment projects which have accrued rewards. We hope that this offers you a clear picture of the activities of the foundation "Whoever witness the facts, feel assured." The Foundation is in need of your continued support to the extent you are able and we are happy from a word, moral or financial support. We also hope that Allah grants us an increase in doing good for those in need around the Islamic world and that he accepts from us and you the virtuous deed. May peace and mercy of Allah be upon you and His blessings. ATTESTATIONS OF MAJOR SCHOLARS Attestation of The Eminent Shaykh 'Abdul-'Aziz 'Abdullah Ibn Baz (May Allah Have Mercy upon his soul) Bismillaahir Rahmaanir Raheem No. 2394 Dated: 28/12/1419 From Abdul-'Aziz Ibn Abdullah Ibn Baaz to the brother, the noble and honorable shaykh 'Aqeel Ibn 'Abdul-'Aziz Al-'Aqeel General Director of Al-Haramain Charitable Foundation, may Allah grant him every good, ameen. As-Salaamu 'Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakaatuhu To Proceed: I attach for you a check in the amount of 10,000 Riyals to assist the Foundation in its charitable work. May Allah accept your efforts, multiply your reward and bless you in your work for indeed He is Most Generous and Most Kind. Mufti of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia President of the Committee of Scholars and Administration of Islamic Research and Rulings Attestation of The Eminent Shaykh Muhammad Ibn Saalih Al-'Uthaimeen (May Allah Have Mercy upon his Soul) Bismillaahir Rahmaanir Raheem On the evening of Wednesday the first of Rajab in the year 1419, I attended the ceremony in honor of new Muslims at the Al-Haramain Foundation site in Jeddah and I was very pleased with what the Foundation has done both domestically and internationally just as I was pleased with the opening of the breasts of the brothers who accepted Islam. I ask Allah ta'aala to make all of them firm and to provide us with sincerity and correct action. The Night of 1/7/1419 And on his last visit to Al-Haramain Foundation headquarters on Sunday the fourth of Jumaada al-Aakhirah 1421 "...Allah has made is easy for me to visit the center of Al-Haramain Foundation in Riyadh. This foundation is a blessed foundation, and to Allah belongs the praise. A sign of its blessings is the affect it has had both inside and outside and has done so many good works. It has twelve areas in charitable work which are fulfilled by young men whom we think are virtuous and fitting… they work in order to support this foundation and to guide their brethren in Muslim countries and non-Muslim countries." Committee For Continuous Charity

This item is available on the Militant Islam Monitor website, at http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/118