APA’s exclusive interview with General Mansour Sultan al-Turki, Security Spokesman for the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Q. Saudi Arabia is located in a complicated geographical region. How does the Interior Ministry carry out its activities in the fight against crime and terrorism?
A. The Kingdom is fighting against terrorism through long-term strategy that aims to prevent radicalization, and to counter terrorism and its finance through the following process: criminalizing any activities related to terrorism and its finance; organizing charity and fund raising; raising public awareness of terrorism related ideologies, radicalization and financing process, laws identifying terrorism related activities; increasing security forces capacity to enforce laws of countering terrorism and its finance, protect country boarder, secure targeted facilities; improved security intelligence in cooperation with the community to thwart terrorist plans, dismantle terrorist’s cells, and arrest terrorism recruits; cooperating with the international community in confronting terrorism and its finance; creating MBN Center to develop Rehabilitation programs for Saudis convicted on terrorism related crimes; preventing inmates from being radicalized while serving their sentence, and strengthening their social ties with tier families and communities through improving prison facilities and inmate services.
Q. What types of terrorist acts do terrorists resort to in Saudi Arabia?
A. Suicidal acts committed in the Kingdom include explosive belts, and targeting policemen using machine guns.
Q. We’d like you to give us some statistics of the terrorist acts committed in your country. What is the annual amount of damage that is caused to the country as a consequence of terrorist acts? What is the annual average number of terror victims?
A. We had more than 138 terrorist attacks in the Kingdom since March 2001, which resulted in the death of 219 and injury of 800 civilians and policemen. From 25 October 2014 to 14 October 2015, 21 terrorist attacks were committed in the country, which killed 65 people and wounded 99 more. From 15 October 2015 to 3 October 2016, 34 terrorist attacks were committed in the country, which killed 31 people and wounded 78 more. From 3 October 2016 to 22 February 2017, nine terrorist attacks were committed in the country, which killed 5 people and wounded one another.
Q. The fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) is one of the main activities of the Kingdom. How is the Kingdom fighting against ISIL within the country and beyond (in Syria, etc.)?
A. We are fighting against ISIL and all other terrorist groups through integrated effort to enforce laws through: working together with community in Saudi Arabia to prevent ISIL from radicalizing young Saudis, and detect and investigate any suspected cases or situations related to terrorism activities. A phone number (990) is highly secured direct communication channel designated for the public to report any encountered suspected activity. Information provided through this cannel would be verified and investigated before any legal action is taken; following radicalization process and cooperate with government agencies, and the community to act against it and prevent any activities related to it within their responsibility; integrating all security forces resources in the efforts to identify terrorist related activities and confront it, and to response to any immediate security issues within the area of their responsibility; cooperating with financial institution to monitor and intercept any suspected financial transaction, and enforcing the laws against any unlawful calls for fund raising, or charity collection; following Saudis joining terrorism groups, or involved in any conflicts, and work with their families to encourage them to give up violating laws and to come back home where they would be prosecuted and rehabilited before going back to the community; having every convicted national to be subject to the rehabilitation programs in MBN center.
Q. Does Saudi Arabia cooperate with world powers, as well as with other countries in fight against terrorism in particular with ISIL?
A. We strongly believe in the importance of international community cooperation to defeat terrorism, and therefore we encourage creation of fast, uninterrupted security channels to exchange information which help in targeting terrorists, thwart their terrorist plots and plans, and dismantle terrorist’s cells. The Kingdom has called for the creation of an international center to counter terrorism, supported the creation of the center financially, and looks forward to having it leading international cooperation in compacting terrorism and its finance.
Q. A rehabilitation center for terrorists is operating under the Saudi Interior Ministry. We’d like you to inform us about this center. Have there been any terrorists from foreign countries, including Azerbaijanis, who were rehabilitated in the center?
A. The center has been created in 2007, and it aims to rehabilitate Saudis involved in terrorism related activities after their release from prison and before they returned to the community. The program includes community role in its efforts, therefore it is concentrating on Saudi national. The only exception was enrolling (13) Yemini nationals released from Guantanamo and hosted by the kingdom because their families live in Saudi Arabia.
Q. Do you cooperate with Azerbaijan’s Interior Ministry?
A. The Kingdom welcomes any cooperation in countering terrorism, but we didn’t have any situation that required cooperation with the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan.
Q. There have been citizens of either Saudi Arabia or Azerbaijan among ISIL supporters. Have both countries jointly acted to determine and neutralize such persons?
A. We follow up Saudi citizens, but didn’t get cross any valuable information which could concern Azerbaijan.
Q. Are there any Azerbaijani citizens imprisoned in your country?
A. We don’t have any Azerbaijani citizens in our prisons.
Q. Your surname “Turki” attracted my attention. Is it an indicator of your being of Turkish origin or does it have any other meaning?
A. My name is not related to any ethnicity, or entity. It’s related to the name of one of my grandfathers.
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