SAUDIS SPECULATE, NAIF TAKES CENTER STAGE

UNCLAS RIYADH 001126 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV PTER ASEC SA SUBJECT: SAUDIS SPECULATE, NAIF TAKES CENTER STAGE REF: A. RIYADH 1110 ¶B. RIYADH 1121 ¶1. (U) Four days after the thwarted August 27 assassination attempt on Assistant Interior Minister Mohammed bin Naif (MbN),speculation is growing about the event itself and its potential impact on domestic politics in the Kingdom. Prince Naif, MbN's powerful father, has taken center stage, reaffirming the SAG's commitment to its counter-terrorism strategy and pursuit of reforms. While the media is reporting some conflicting details, all accounts now agree that the attacker was a young Saudi by the name of Abdullah Hassan Tali Al-Asiri, on the list of the SAG's 85 Most Wanted terrorist suspects. ¶2. (U) During a speech to the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry on August 30 that received front-page coverage in several major dailies, Second Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Prince Naif stressed that the SAG remained steadfast in the wake of the attack on his son. "The security efforts and the strategy that the country is following for reform will not change," he said, adding that the door would remain open for those who repent. He cautioned that the arrest of terrorist suspects with advanced degrees meant future terrorist attacks could become more sophisticated and more dangerous, adding "it saddens me that some educated sons of this country are aiding in such criminal acts." ¶3. (U) The SAG has declined to publicly confirm the identity of the bomber. However, Yemeni Foreign Minister Abu-Bakr Al-Qirbi is quoted in several papers naming Al-Asiri, who allegedly traveled to Saudi Arabia from the Yemeni region of Ma'rib. Al-Arabiya also fingered Al-Asiri, adding that he was a 23 year-old Saudi whose brother Ibrahim was also on the SAG's 85 Most Wanted list. AQAP reportedly claimed Al-Asiri arrived in Jeddah aboard MbN's private jet, and had passed through security checkpoints in Najran and Jeddah airports, as well as the Prince's palace, before detonating his explosives in front of MbN. ERDMAN