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Terror Cell Trained by ‘Hezbollah’ Goes on Trial in Saudi Arabia

Saudi security forces in Riyadh. (Reuters)
Saudi security forces in Riyadh. (Reuters)
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Terror Cell Trained by ‘Hezbollah’ Goes on Trial in Saudi Arabia

Saudi security forces in Riyadh. (Reuters)
Saudi security forces in Riyadh. (Reuters)

The trial of four Saudi members of a terrorist cell got underway in Saudi Arabia on Thursday on charges of undermining security and incitement against the state.

Three of the members are accused of receiving training at Iranian camps of the Lebanese “Hezbollah” group.

The suspects are accused of incitement in the al-Shuweika neighborhood in the al-Qatif region. They are also suspected of smuggling members of the cell, also Saudis, to Iran in order to receive training at “Hezbollah” camps there.

They are trained on the use of machineguns, manufacturing of bombs using C-4 and TNT explosives and targeting security forces.

Once the training is complete, the terrorists are then smuggled by sea from Iran to Saudi Arabia to carry out their attacks that are aimed at undermining the kingdom’s security. Arrangements for the smuggling are made through a wanted fugitive currently in Iran.

Two of the suspects on trial are accused of financing fugitive individuals and groups. Others are also charged with taking part in riots and rallies in al-Shuweika neighborhood and chanting anti-Saudi slogans.

Furthermore, the charges against the terrorists demonstrated their “major loyalty” to “Hezbollah” by revealing their possession of the party’s flags, as well as images of its leader Hassan Nasrallah.

The General Prosecution demanded the death penalty against the four suspects if found guilty.

If the death penalty is rejected, then it demanded that the greatest punishment be laid down against them according to the 2014 royal decree that calls for three to 20 years in jail to anyone found guilty of fighting abroad. The same punishment also includes those belonging to extremist ideological or religious groups and internationally, regionally or locally designated terrorist organizations, or their backers.

The General Prosecution demanded that the four suspects also be fined for financing terrorism, possessing and smuggling weapons and inciting against the state. Funds seized in the possession of the suspects were seized and they have been barred from traveling.

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Saudi Arabia Emphasizes Peaceful Cooperation to Achieve Global Security

Ambassador Abdul Mohsen bin Khothaila speaks during the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference. (Photo: Saudi Mission in Geneva)
Ambassador Abdul Mohsen bin Khothaila speaks during the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference. (Photo: Saudi Mission in Geneva)
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Saudi Arabia Emphasizes Peaceful Cooperation to Achieve Global Security

Ambassador Abdul Mohsen bin Khothaila speaks during the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference. (Photo: Saudi Mission in Geneva)
Ambassador Abdul Mohsen bin Khothaila speaks during the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference. (Photo: Saudi Mission in Geneva)

Saudi Arabia emphasized peaceful international cooperation as a means to achieve global prosperity, stability and security, stressing the importance of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the necessity of its full implementation.

Ambassador Abdul Mohsen bin Khothaila, the Permanent Saudi Representative to the United Nations and international organizations in Geneva, participated in the second session of the Preparatory Committee for the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference.

The ambassador called for more effective international efforts to achieve the goals and universality of the NPT, urging non-party states to join the treaty and subject all their nuclear facilities to the comprehensive safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Affirming the right to the peaceful use of nuclear technology under Article 4 of the Treaty, he underlined the importance of adhering to the highest standards of transparency and reliability, calling on all parties to cooperate to promote peaceful use for the benefit of global development and well-being.

He stated that the responsibility for making the Middle East a nuclear-weapon-free zone lies with the international community, especially the sponsors of the 1995 resolution on the Middle East.

Bin Khothaila condemned the recent statements and threats made by a member of the Israeli government regarding the use of nuclear weapons against the Palestinians, describing his words as violations of international law and a threat to global peace and security.

He further called for intensifying cooperation between the parties to the NPT to attain positive results at the next “review conference” in 2026, with the aim of achieving a safe world free of nuclear weapons.