Saudi entrance: ‘No suspicions about OBL family’

Saudi Arabia acted out of humanitarian considerations: Spokesman.

RIYADH: A Saudi spokesman said late on Saturday that his government has no suspicions about relatives of slain al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden who were deported from Pakistan last week, breaking an official news blackout over their admission to the kingdom.

“Saudi Arabia acted out of humanitarian considerations... in so far as there are no reports or evidence of any implication in criminal or illegal acts,” the official Saudi Press Agency quoted the spokesman as saying.

“At the request of the Bin Laden family in Saudi Arabia, steps were taken to facilitate the return of members of Osama bin Laden’s family, who arrived on Thursday night in Jeddah where they were welcomed by their relatives,” the spokesman added.

“It is inappropriate to discuss in any way the details of the private life of the Bin Laden family in Saudi Arabia.” Earlier on Saturday, a Saudi-owned daily reported that the authorities had allowed Bin Laden’s three widows and their children entrance into the kingdom on humanitarian grounds.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2012.