Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Urgent: Something is cooking in Riyadh

On February 3, 2009, Saudi Arabia issued a list of 83 individuals wanted for terrorist activities. This was followed by Interpol issuing an orange notice for these individuals on February 10th. This is an unprecedented security alert and should be taken quite seriously. It is not typical for a nation to issue a list of 83 wanted individuals all at once unless Riyadh has intelligence that a terrorist attack is imminent. It appears as if the Kingdom issued this list because the intelligence they possess is sketchy, yet reliable, and the Saudis are hoping to get lucky by nabbing a few of these individuals and gleaning more actionable intelligence.

Back in April of 2008 I warned that al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula would work with the al-Qaeda affiliate in Yemen in an attempt to move weapons and personnel across the border for future terrorist attacks when the opportunity presented itself. The recent news of two former Guantanamo inmates rejoining al-Qaeda in Yemen coming on the heels of all this activity cannot be coincidental. It’s time we all watch Saudi Arabia very closely in the coming days and weeks.