SAUDI ARABIA: Saudi Arabia searched yesterday for an American engineer who al-Qaeda said it kidnapped in a new escalation of a campaign to oust the kingdom's pro-US monarchy and drive out Westerners.
The kidnapping, the first of a westerner in the world's leading oil exporter, raised the stakes in al-Qaeda's war on a royal family it deems "ungodly and subservient to America". It came a week after Irish cameraman, Mr Simon Cumbers, was shot dead and his BBC colleague Mr Frank Gardener was seriously wounded while filming in Riyadh.
The US embassy said it was working with Saudi authorities to find US engineer, Mr Paul Johnson (49), who al-Qaeda said it had captured on Saturday.
The group also claimed Saturday's killing of US national Mr Kenneth Scroggs, who worked for Advanced Electronics Co.
Witnesses said he was shot as he parked his car at his villa.
The attack, the sixth on westerners in six weeks, rattled thousands of expatriates, prompting fears of a mass exodus.
Yesterday diplomats and security sources said a body, believed to be that of a Westerner, had been dumped near a building in the capital, but Riyadh's police chief denied the report.
Police, hunting for militants, said they sealed off two areas in Riyadh and arrested two suspects. It was not clear if the action was linked to the killing and kidnapping.
The US embassy issued a new warning to US citizens, saying the recent attacks showed extensive planning and surveillance and urged them to vary schedules and keep a low profile to thwart militants. The UK Foreign Office gave all non-essential staff and their families permission to return home, while British Airways said its flight crews would no longer spend nights in Saudi Arabia because the airline feared for their safety. BA will land in Kuwait instead, then make short-haul trips to Riyadh.
US Secretary of State Mr Colin Powell said the United States was determined to do all it could to defeat the militants.
"Clearly this is a dangerous time for Saudi Arabia and we're working with them and cooperating with them in every way we can to defeat these terrorists," Mr Powell told NBC. "It's not unravelling, but it's certainly a dangerous situation." Mr Powell told Fox News that Riyadh would have to do more to combat militants, though he was satisfied with their efforts so far.
Some six million foreigners work in Saudi Arabia, including 35,000 Americans and 30,000 Britons.
Fears about security in Saudi Arabia helped push world oil prices to record highs this month before producers pledged to raise output.
Al-Qaeda said Saturday's killing and kidnapping were meant to avenge US mistreatment of Muslim prisoners in Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison and Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. It warned it would subject Mr Johnson to the same treatment.
Expatriates are concerned that the assaults are increasing and that militants are escaping unharmed from Saudi security forces.
All the militants responsible for the latest attacks are still at large except for one who was seriously wounded.
Saudi analysts said the government needed to improve intelligence rather than carry out random military crackdowns.
The website that carried the kidnapping claim also posted a video showing the purported killing of another American, military contractor Robert Jacobs, in Riyadh on Tuesday.