Commander of the Saudi air forces removed
Saudi Arabia, Politics, 6/23/2003

Saudi Arabia's King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz has decided, according to a royal decision, stated by the Saudi news agency to remove the commander of the defense forces in Saudi Arabia.

The text of the Royal decree said that King Fahd decided to "end the services of Lt. Gen. Majed Bin Talhab, the commander of the air defense forces by retiring him as from the first of July, according to a request of the Saudi defense minister Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz and the Crown Prince Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz.".

The royal order continued that Maj. Gen. Ateyah Bin Abdullah al-Touri will be promoted to a Lt. gen. and to be appointed as a commander to the air defense forces. The agency gave no mention to reasons behind the new appointment on the top of the Saudi air defense force.

On the other hand, sources said that the security forces in Mecca arrested four Saudi women after breaking into a flat rented by one suspected extremist. The Saudi daily al-Watan said that the security forces found three pistols, one gun and live ammunition and a bag filled with gold when they broke into the flat on Friday. Other papers said that the police found also a primitively made bomb.

These acts of detention, however, are the most recent in a campaign aiming at suspected extremists, launched in Saudi Arabia following suicide attacks that took place in May and targeted three residential complexes for westerners in Riyadh and resulted in killing 35 persons. The Saudi authorities blamed al-Qaida organization for this attack.

Previous Stories:
  Moroccan premier meets Saudi civil service minister   (6/20/2003)
  Saudi public service minister meets Moroccan officials   (6/19/2003)
  Crown prince Abdullah calls for a national dialogue   (6/19/2003)

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