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Riyadh: A delegation representing Saudi counselling committees concluded an official two-week visit to Guantanamo Bay detention camp last week, where the delegation met with American officials in charge of the detainees.
The counselling committees, comprising Islamic scholars, preachers, academics, psychologists and sociologists were set up by the Saudi Ministry of Interior a few years ago to encourage detained militants to renounce their extremist beliefs.
Saudi authorities have said more than once that confronting deviant ideologies adopted by militant groups is not the mission of the interior ministry alone. Prince Nayef Bin Abdul Aziz, the Saudi Interior Minister, met with employees of the Ministry of Islamic affairs, Islamic propagators and preachers this week and urged Islamic scholars and mosque preachers to confront deviant ideologies. Saudi observers noted that the appeal to involve all segments of society in the fight against terror, is aimed at making it clear that Islamic slogans raised by militant groups to justify their bombing operations are just attempts to deceive public opinion.
The Jeddah-based Okaz Arabic newspaper quoted a member of the delegation saying that the American side appreciates the efforts exerted by Saudi Arabia in reforming and rehabilitating its prisoners and helping them integrate into society after applying security and judicial measures.
"The Americans expressed significant understanding of these efforts after they listened to lectures and a presentation of the efforts being exerted by the [Saudi] interior ministry to rehabilitate those returning from Guantanamo. This gives a strong indication that all Saudi detainees in Guantanamo will return to the Kingdom in groups ... the ministry of interior is working towards the acceleration of the arrival of the groups," a member of the counselling delegation pointed out.
The United States is keeping 69 Saudi detainees, among other nationalities, who were arrested during the US military operations against the Taliban regime in Afghanistan more than five years ago.
Gulf News has learnt from sources that members of the Saudi counselling delegation, who visited the American detention camp from May 30 to June 14, met tens of Saudi detainees at the camp.
The delegation answered questions about the situation in the Kingdom and the condition of other detainees who were set free and returned to the Kingdom earlier. The detainees expressed their desire to return to their homeland to become members of society after receiving psychological and social rehabilitation.
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