Seized arms cache shows Al Qaida's change of tactics

Riyadh: Prominent Saudi security analysts said the huge cache of arms unearthed by Saudi security officials at a rest house near Riyadh is clear proof of Al Qaida's change of tactics.

After suffering severe setbacks in the kingdom following a successful crackdown and pre-emptive strikes by security forces, Al Qaida is now mainly concentrating on targeting key Saudi figures rather than hitting major security installations.

"These weapons could have been smuggled into the kingdom on various occasions and then assembled at the rest house," the analysts said, adding that they were intended for use in planned assassinations of prominent Saudi officials.

An Interior Ministry statement on Sunday revealed the discovery of the arms cache near the capital which was linked to an Al Qaida cell dismantled in August. The weapons were found buried under a concrete slab in a vacant rest house owned by a terrorist, in the Thadeq region in Riyadh Province.

The arms haul consisted of 281 Kalashnikov assault rifles, 250 magazines and 35 cases containing 41,250 rounds of ammunition, Major General Mansour Al Turki, spokesman of the ministry of interior said.

Naif Al Shamri, a noted Saudi security analyst, said that Al Qaida is now taking advantage of the turbulent situation in neighbouring Yemen. "The seized weapons are sufficient for three or four small gangs to carry out terror strikes against senior Saudi civilian and security officials or media persons," he revealed.