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Attack against Prophet’s Mosque…Revealing Indications | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Muslim worshipers gather after a suicide bomber detonated a device near the security headquarters of the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia, July 4, 2016. REUTERS/Stringer EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE.


Incident that took place on the fourth of June and targeted people while praying near the Prophet’s Mosque (SAW) in Medina, and in mosques of Jeddah and Qatif on the Eid evening was a chance to unify the Saudis from all regions and sects, and a bloody evidence on the massive gap between terrorism and Islam, and between Saudi Arabia and terrorists.

Saudi Arabia has been the first target since Bin Laden speeches in 2003, which used to consider the Kingdom as a target while constantly ignored Iran.

Attacks against mosques, stores, and prayers have been a clear strategy adopted by ISIS in Saudi Arabia over the past years. This strategy emphasizes the crisis of the organization, which uses it as a mean to neglect the social and security awareness in the country that insists on terrorism’s eradication.

The latest bombings came as a response to the Kingdoms’ rejection of this group’s ideology, its participation in the international alliance to combat terrorism, and its strong strategy in adopting proactive security operations, in addition to its social strategy to eradicate the vicious roots of terrorism through the Center for Advice, Counseling and Care and the Sakina campaign.

In May, Riyadh also succeeded in eliminating cells of communication and coordination among ISIS’s members in the region, like Oqab al-Otaibi’s cell, which operated as an intermediate for the organization’s operations against the Kingdom over the two past years.

These integrated security strategies adopted by the Kingdom may be the main reason behind ISIS’s recent attacks against mosques and religious centers in its five operations in mosques of Qatif, Dammam, and Dalwa during 2014, trying to use sectarian discord to increase hatred.

The terrorist organization also worked on targeting familial links in the Kingdom, like in the incident of 24 of June, when a teenager killed his parents, and on intimidating scholars and preacher through statements of threat and takfir published in ISIS’s magazine “Dabik” in January.

From May 2015 to May 2016, Saudi Arabia witnessed around 30 terrorist operations, an average of one operation every 12 days. It also witnessed 124 operations since the attacks of Osama bin Laden in March 2003, which killed tens of civilians and security members, and wounded hundreds others. From 2003 till 2011, 98 terrorist attacks took place in the Kingdom and killed 90 people including members from security forces.

Amidst a drop in the attraction rate to extremism, official statements note that Saudi fighters in Syria and Iraq are around 3,000, and that 760 out of them have returned in 2015.
A lot of clear evidences emphasize the independence of Saudi Arabia from terrorism. The speeches of Osama bin Laden note that Saudi Arabia is ranked first among its enemies. Recently, “Al Ghuraba Media” (“the foreigners”) published a small letter for Osama al-Gharib in which he considers Mecca as a house of disbelief.

In spite of all the above mentioned information, Saudi Arabia faces calumniating and random accusations from Iran and Bashar al-Assad’s regime, in which they link between the Kingdom and terrorists.
Many calumniators say that the crimes committed by terrorists and suicide bombers are inspired by Saudi religious schools and scholars like Ibn Taymiyyah.

However, the Kingdom long and bloody history in combating terrorism, and the targeting of its people in mosques reveal how fake these allegations are. It also emphasizes the deep gap between the spread extremism in its ideologies and theories and the heritage of Muslims and their countries.

Terrorists don’t respect dates or places, as they targeted people on the holy month of Ramadan while praying in mosques. They launched their war against the whole world including Saudi Arabia, which combats them and insists on eradicating them.