Saudi King wants al-Qaida leaders to surrender

Saudi Arabia's king Abdullah Ibn Abdul Aziz proposed the gunmen in al-Qaida organization surrender to the authorities and end the cycle of violence in the country since two years.

King Abdullah called on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the National Day of the Kingdom, which falls next Friday, on what he labeled as "the misled group" to take the initiative and surrender to the government.

This call, which is not known if it implies special a pardon for the gunmen if they surrender, came in the government's weekly meeting. Though no offer of pardon was quoted by the king, the Saudi officials ever said that the gunmen who will surrender will be treated in a positive way.

The late Saudi King Fahd Bin Abdul Aziz offered members of al-Qaida organization a grace period of one month to surrender, but the pardon did not receive great response from the gunmen, and acts of violence continued there.

More that 90 Saudis and foreigners have been killed since May 2003 in the campaign of violence launched by al-Qaida organization with the aim to topple the ruling family and expel non Muslims from the Arab Peninsula. The Saudi police still keeps a list for the most important wanted, composed of 29 leaders out of 36. Many of them were killed and others arrested.