|
Riyadh: Saudi Arabia yesterday said it intended to regulate more tightly the sale and use of firecrackers and commercial explosives, weeks after widespread arrests of suspected Al Qaida-linked militants.
The Saudi cabinet said after a meeting chaired by King Abdullah that the sale, use and production of non-military explosives and firecrackers would be strictly controlled.
Penalties would be imposed for those not abiding by the new measures, published by the state news agency SPA. Details of punishments for disobeying the rules would be issued by the Interior Ministry within four months.
Saudi Arabia said in April it had arrested 172 militants, including some trainee pilots, planning attacks on oil facilities, military bases and government officials in the world's biggest oil exporter.
Access restricted
The government has since restricted access to industrial and agricultural chemicals that can be used to make explosives.
Islamist militants linked to Al Qaida launched a violent campaign against the Saudi government in 2003, carrying out suicide bomb attacks on foreigners and government installations, including the oil industry.
Officials say about 144 foreigners and Saudis, including members of the security forces, and 120 militants have died in attacks and clashes with police since May 2003, when Al Qaida suicide bombers hit three Western housing compounds in Riyadh.
Last week the Saudi Ministry of Education launched a number of security awareness programmes in different schools.
Lectures and exhibitions, covering the threats of religious extremist ideologies, were organised. The Riyadh-based King Saud University, the biggest university in Saudi Arabia, recently organised a cultural week under the theme A Week of National Solidarity Against Terrorism.
|
