The Saudi Crown Prince as I know him – 3

Following the attack of Al-Khobar in 1996, which claimed the lives of 19 Americans, the security services in Saudi Arabia succeeded in apprehending the planners and perpetrators of the attack, and established that Saudi/Iranian Hezbollah was behind it. Prince Nayef read to me one night, at his office, some of the confessions and told me a story with important implications. He told me that according to the Saudi security’s intelligence, one of the leaders behind the terrorist attack, named Jafar Shuweikhat, from the eastern region, had trained in Iran, the Bekaa Valley and ended up in Syria. Prince Nayef subsequently requested a meeting with President Hafez al-Assad, and briefed him on the case and asked for Shuweikhat to be extradited, only to hear from the Syrian President that he had committed suicide. Prince Nayef told me that President Hafez al-Assad said that Shuweikhat had cut his shirt to make a rope and hung himself in the cell from the metallic windowsill. Prince Nayef said to me that he had expressed his astonishment to the Syrian President at the fact that the cell had a window and a chair for the man to stand on and then push with his feet. Also, Shuweikhat had been detained in Saudi Arabia before and he weighed between 80 to 90 kilograms so what kind of shirt could have borne his weight? At any rate, and more importantly, the Americans had asked after the Al-Khobar bombing to conduct the investigation themselves, but Prince Nayef refused, as this would have been a violation of national sovereignty. Then they requested to take part in the investigation, and this was again rejected by the Prince who insisted that Saudi security is the only party in charge. In the end, all what the Interior Minister agreed to was to allow the American investigators to give their Saudi counterparts questions, which the latter would then ask the suspects, and the Americans would listen to the answers behind a two-way mirror. Recently, I wrote about how Prince Nayef did not give up the Iranians to the Americans, after which the former refrained from supporting any terrorist attacks orchestrated by their people against Saudi Arabia. In truth, Prince Nayef’s stance on Iran can be summed up thus: “May God keep them content but far, far away”. I sometimes feel that one of the most important reasons of the failure of the United States in dealing with the Arab countries is its ignorance when it comes to these countries’ traditions and customs. In the case of the Al-Khobar bombing specifically, Louis Freeh, then-head of the FBI, secretly visited Saudi Arabia and complained about Prince Nayef’s position and ‘non-cooperation’ to King Fahd, without realizing that the Prince was implementing a policy set out by the King, and therefore could not be possibly considered to have been “working on the side”, so to speak. And if the FBI’s chief doesn’t know this, then who among the Americans can be expected to know? Prince Nayef as Crown Prince will implement the policies of King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz, and I have full confidence that he will not contradict anything decided by the King. I reassure the Saudi women of this, and I promise them that I will defend their achievements and urge the Crown Prince for more of them. My papers include statements by Prince Nayef on the relations with the United States and his views on U.S. policies, and I choose some of what I heard following the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and the invasion of Iraq. Prince Nayef said: The U.S. position against the Kingdom (in the aftermath of the terror attacks) does not benefit America. Every country must pursue its own interests while respecting the interests of others… We have no intention to be hostile to America or any European country. We and any Arab country have no interest in this. It benefits neither us nor America. American belligerence (after 11/09/2001) is disturbing and I am neither satisfied nor reassured by it. I hope that the relations between our two countries will be restored [to their previous level], based on mutual respect and respect for sovereignty. We do not accept any dictates or coercion. Rather, attempts to intervene in the internal affairs of other countries must be stopped, and the independence and autonomy of these countries must be respected (This is ever more relevant today, because of the U.S. claims of having a role in the Arab uprisings). …Covert operations and activities by intelligence agencies and embassies are wrong and futile. Again I say it is wrong. Personally, I say that the new Saudi Crown Prince is as much reassured to dealing with the Obama administration than he was uncomfortable in dealing with the George W. Bush administration. I read that when Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz was appointed Governor of Riyadh, when he was sixteen in 1947, Prince Nayef was appointed the Deputy Governor of Riyadh. Now, Prince Nayef is succeeding his late brother as Crown Prince, and I believe that he will continue the task in the service of the country. Prince Nayef is a faithful Saudi patriot, and I wish continued success for him and the best for his country with him. khazen@alhayat.com