The Interior Minister, Prince Naif bin Abdul Aziz, on Wednesday received relatives of Saudi detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
At the outset of the meeting, Prince Naif reassured those present that the Saudi government is committed to pursue the case of the detainees, in accordance with instructions of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz, Crown Prince Abdullah and the Second Deputy Premier Prince Sultan. The efforts the Saudi authorities are exerting to have the detainees extradited to the Kingdom for trial have yielded positive results, he said, citing the release of a number of detainees, and the expected release of others.
Prince Naif then briefed the relatives of detainees on the efforts exerted by the team of lawyers, which is supported by the Saudi government.
“Just a small number of detainees have returned. However, we will continue to exert our utmost efforts to ensure the return of all of them,” he said.
He urged the relatives to depend not only on newspapers as a source of information on the detainees, saying that the Interior Ministry’s office oversees this matter. “You can call this office at any time to ask any questions you may have, and we will do our best to provide you with the information you request,” he said. Prince Naif also urged the Ulama (religious scholars), schools and universities effectively to guide and educate the youth, and to protect them from malicious influences.
On behalf of the Saudi Committee for the Saudi lawyers team assigned to defend the Saudi detainees in Guantanamo, the Head of the Committee Ahmad Madhar, stressed that the team is exerting every possible effort to follow up the case legal defence.
“The government of the United States of America has committed violations of international agreements at Guantanamo Bay,” he said. He expressed hope that U.S. officials are aware of these violations, and will correct them.
The relatives of the detainees at Guantanamo Bay expressed their appreciation to the Saudi leadership and authorities responsible for overseeing the issue.
The audience was attended by Prince Mohammad bin Naif bin Abdul Aziz, Assistant Interior Minister for Security Affairs; Dr Saed Al-Orabi Al-Harthi, Advisor to the Minister, and the Saudi private lawyers’ team assigned to defend the Saudi detainees in Guantanamo.
Source: SPA
