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| Arabia |
| Riyadh prison fire may have been arson |
| 2003-09-16 |
| Reliable Gulf-based sources have informed Albawaba that a significant number of those who died in Monday’s Al-Hair prison fire, if not the majority of them, are followers of Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden that have been arrested in the Kingdom in recent months. Saudi government said no al-Qaeda suspects were in this prison. Wonder where they are then if not in their biggest prison. Saudi Interior Ministry officials are not saying whether the fire was a result of an accident or if it had been deliberately set. However, sources told Albawaba that according to initial findings, there is reason to suspect the fire was intentionally ignited. Another source said they had foam mattresses in the cells, that would explain the deaths by smoke inhalation. In the meantime, however, a senior Saudi security source quoted by Al Hayat ruled out "any act of sabotage". "This sort of accident happens anywhere and a short circuit cannot be ruled out, particularly since the fire started in the afternoon at a time when the electricity supply is overloaded," the source said. Maybe, maybe not. Prisoners have set mattresses on fire before in protest of conditions, may have gotten out of control. In London, meanwhile, a Saudi opposition group said that as many as 144 inmates and 40 security men died in Monday’s blaze, more than double the official toll initially given by Saudi authorities. The Saudis lied? Well, OK. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #9 Hey, does this mean that Amnesty International will get off our backs about conditions in GITMO?... I'm waiting. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2003-9-16 4:30:08 PM |
| #8 And I thought beheading was a much neater solution. Saudis are slipping. |
| Posted by: john 2003-9-16 3:03:10 PM |
| #7 DEBKA thinks the same: Blaze in Riyadh prison kills more than 100 inmates. DEBKAfile reveals: Sabotage apparently behind fire which caused deaths of al Qaeda captives before they gave away secrets under interrogation |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-9-16 1:45:16 PM |
| #6 And the gasses the foam gives off would be a great subsitiute for San Q's old gas chamber. What a convenient way to eliminate enemies. Though I would imagine that a prison would be mostly stone, concrete, and steel in Saudi. People burned beyond recognition is beyond me unless one had alot of fuel around. That's the part of the story that is very weak. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-9-16 1:16:07 PM |
| #5 More details: SPA did not name the prison official but was apparently referring to Ali Hussein al-Harethi, who told a correspondent on the scene that a sponge mattress caught fire in a cell housing 20 inmates in wing 19 of the facility, setting off the blaze. Non-fire retardent sponge mattress, burns hot with a lot of smoke. They'll melt and stick like napalm, too. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-9-16 11:45:52 AM |
| #4 The death toll from a fire that swept through a prison in the Saudi capital has risen to 94, a prison official said Tuesday. Relatives of inmates waited outside al-Haer prison to learn the fate of their loved ones after Monday's fire, which burned some bodies beyond recognition, the official said. Can I call them or what? |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-9-16 11:22:10 AM |
| #3 Assuming, of course, that the people in prison are who they say they are. Or who they don't say they are. Or what "they" really means. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-9-16 11:10:13 AM |
| #2 alk-runner dispute in the cells, obviously, Louie. Round up the usual suspects |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-9-16 10:29:38 AM |
| #1 So the Soddies get a jugfull of jihadis, some of them cannon fodder, some of them with stuff that could be incriminating for others with much less likelihood of ever seeing the inside of the calaboose. So rather than sorting through the lot of them, somebody just decides to burn them all to the ground. This is a story that should really be pushed. |
| Posted by: Fred 2003-9-16 10:23:16 AM |