http://www.geostrategy-direct.com/
Saudi branch of Al Qaida seeks new leader after death of old . . . ABU DHABI Al Qaida operatives in Saudi Arabia are searching for a new commander. Last week, the commander of the Saudi network was killed in a battle with Saudi security forces in eastern Riyad. The commander was identified as Younis Mohammed Ibrahim Al Hayari. Islamic sources said Al Qaida was considering several candidates, including another non-Saudi, to head the network in the Arab kingdom. They did not rule out the possibility that an Arab operative in Iraq would return to Saudi Arabia to command the insurgency group. Al Hayari topped the Interior Ministry's list of 36 Al Qaida fugitives. Al Hayari was a Moroccan national who operated in the kingdom since 2001 and who sought to achieve the status of Abu Mussib Al Zarqawi, head of the Al Qaida network in Iraq. "Disguising himself, Hayari had been moving back and forth in the dens of the deviant group [Al Qaida] and is known as being experienced in preparing explosives," the Interior Ministry said. "He was directly involved in some of the incidents which occurred in the country and was recently named by his colleagues, after his predecessors perished, as the head of sedition." The sources said Al Hayari entered Saudi Arabia using a Bosnian passport. Morocco exchanged information with Saudi Arabia on Al Hayari, who also planned operations outside of Saudi Arabia. [On July 9, the Saudi Interior Ministry reported that a leading Al Qaida fugitive had been detained in Yemen. The ministry said Zaid Hassan Humaid was in a Yemeni jail under the name of Zaid Hassan Juaidi.] Al Hayari was said to have planned the takeover of the foreign compound in Khobar in May 2004 in which 22 people were killed. The sources said Al Hayari, who blended into Saudi society, surveilled the compound for months. In July 2004, Al Hayari assumed a military role in the Al Qaida network. He reportedly helped colleagues escape a failed operation in Riyad in which two members of the network's religious committee were killed. Twenty-one of those on the current Interior Ministry list are said to be outside Saudi Arabia. Al Hayari was one of seven non-Saudis sought by the ministry. Islamic sources said the Al Qaida network might come under the temporary leadership of Saleh Awfi, a former Saudi prison guard. He has evaded several Saudi security operations, including a massive attack in April 2005 in which 15 Al Qaida insurgents were killed. Another prospect is Fahd Faraj Mohammed Al Juwari. The sources said Al Juwari, who appeared on the ministry's list, has become an important figure. . . . To oversee estimated $500 million budget ABU DHABI Al Qaida has access to a budget of more than $500 million for its insurgency campaign in Saudi Arabia. Saudi security sources said Al Qaida has assets in cash, property, firearms, munitions and precious metals throughout the kingdom. Al Qaida has used the budget to recruit and train insurgents in both Saudi Arabia and Iraq. Saudi authorities said the money might have been raised abroad. Neither Abdul Aziz Al Muqrin, killed in a Saudi shootout in June 2004, nor his predecessors were wealthy. Salah Al Awfi was also not regarded as the source of the funding. Raids on Al Qaida strongholds since May 2003 have turned up huge amounts of cash. In many cases, stashes of more than $150,000 were found. The biggest cache was in June 2003 when Saudi security forces raided an Al Qaida safehouse and confiscated 761,253 Saudi riyals, or about $200,000. The sources ruled out that Al Qaida was being financed from within the kingdom. Authorities have imposed strict regulations requiring banks and financial institutions to report large or suspicious transactions. Over the weekend, Saudi Arabia reported the surrender of an Al Qaida fugitive. The Interior Ministry said Fayez Omar Ayoub, who appears on a new list of the 36 most-wanted Islamic insurgents, agreed to be taken to Saudi Arabia from Lebanon. -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. 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