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October 13, 2001 THE OFFER Saudi Sheik Regrets Giuliani Turned Down His Donation By NEIL MacFARQUHAR RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Oct. 12 - Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz Alsaud expressed regret today that his proposed $10 million donation to the Twin Towers Fund had been rejected by Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani. The prince said, however, that he had no qualms about his criticism of American policy in the Middle East, which he expressed in a news release. The prince did not include the statement when he presented the check on Thursday in New York. He said he included the statement, voicing support for the Palestinian cause, in the release because reporters have since the attack repeatedly asked how to eradicate terrorism. "I am telling Americans what America is beginning to know already," the prince said in an interview here soon after returning from New York. "America has to understand that if it wants to extract the roots of this ridiculous and terrible act, this issue has to be solved." The 44-year-old prince, a billionaire investor, said he flew from the Saudi capital to make the donation on Thursday at a memorial service for victims of the attack to show his affinity for the city. He also said he had suffered huge monetary losses as a result of the attack. "My contribution was for the family and the victims of New York," he said. "I will not put blame on Mr. Giuliani. He is doing a good job in New York. But his decision should be more rational." The fund is a charity set up for survivors of uniformed workers who died in the attacks on Sept. 11. The letter to the mayor accompanying the donation was to express his condolences, the prince said, adding that the political statement in the news release was written in anticipation of reporters' questions. The prince said he thought that the point of view of the Arab world should be explained. "You have to understand that sentiments in the Middle East, sentiments in the Arab world, are very anti-American right now," he said. "This is being vented through the idea of being pro-bin Laden." The prince, a grandson of King Abdel Aziz, who founded the kingdom, is not a member of the government. But his statements mirror the official stance. Saudi Arabia has been somewhat lukewarm publicly, especially toward the American attacks on a Muslim nation, although both sides say there is cooperation. Prince Alwaleed said that the emotions after the attack were probably still too raw in New York to absorb what he was trying to say, especially coming from the Arab world that evidently spawned the terrorists, but that he hoped it would be absorbed later. "I regret that Mr. Giuliani did this," the prince said. "The sentiments and emotions that are simmering and boiling maybe prohibited Mr. Giuliani from accepting." The prince, who the chairman of the Kingdom Holding Company and was No. 6 in July on the Forbes list of the world's richest people, said he had suffered significant losses because of the attack. The prince indicated that his investments harmed in New York included his 50 percent share of the Plaza Hotel; his 25 percent share of the Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, which manages the Pierre Hotel; his 8 percent holdings in Saks Fifth Avenue; and significant shares in Citigroup, the News Corporation and AOL Time Warner. "We lost monetarily, although this is secondary when you look at what the victims lost in this crime," he said, noting that he pays up to $90 million a year in taxes to New York City. "I am very much entrenched in New York downtown and Manhattan," the prince said. "This terrorist attack was not good for the reputation of the Arab world and the Islamic world and Saudi Arabia. I wanted to show the good face of the Arab world." Should the mayor want to reconsider, the prince said, the check is still valid. Copyright 2001 The New York Times Company ------------------------------------------------- This Discussion List is the follow-up for the old stopnato @listbot.com that has been shut down------=extPart_000_00EE_01C153A8.1D429B00-- THE END ==^================================================================ EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?bUrHhl.bVKZIr Or send an email To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] This email was sent to: archive@jab.org T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================ |
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