Saudi Arabia Identifies Suicide Bombers
Authorities here said Monday that the attack on a residential compound in Riyadh that killed 20 people last month was carried out by two Saudi suicide bombers who were already on an official wanted list.
In the first detailed official account of the bombing, the Interior Ministry said a “terrorist group” drove up to the gates of the Muhaya compound at midnight Nov. 8 in a civilian car.
The group threw grenades and shot at the compound guards. A jeep, painted to resemble a security forces vehicle and loaded with 660 pounds of explosives, then entered the compound.
“It was blown up in a suicide operation inside the compound,” the ministry said in a statement read on state television.
Witnesses said the blast destroyed eight villas in the compound, home to mainly Arab expatriates, both Christian and Muslim. More than 100 people were wounded.
The Interior Ministry said DNA testing had identified the two bombers as Ali Hamed Maabadi Harbi and Nasser Abdullah Nasser Sayyari. Both had been wanted on security charges, officials said.
Saudi officials have blamed Al Qaeda for the attack, which followed a triple suicide bombing in the capital in May that killed at least 35 people, including nine Americans and the nine suicide bombers. Saudi Arabia has cracked down on militants since the May attacks.
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