border police agency Interpol issued an alert Tuesday to police worldwide for 47 Saudis with suspected links to Al-Qaeda wanted on terrorism charges. “Interpol has published at the request of Saudi Arabia Red Notices for 47 internationally-wanted individuals sought by Saudi authorities in connection with alleged terrorism offenses,” it said in a statement. The “red notices” are a high alert to police in member countries to watch out for the suspects and include information to help identify them, with a view to arresting and extraditing them. The Saudi suspects pose “a potentially serious public threat at home and abroad due to their suspected involvement with Al-Qaeda,” Interpol said, citing the Saudi Interior Ministry. Over the weekend, Saudi Arabia asked Interpol for its help in tracking the suspects beyond its borders. Saudi officials have said the men, ages 18 to 40, are believed to be outside the country. Interpol's statement quoted spokesman for the Saudi Interior Ministry, Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki, saying that most of the men “posed a potentially serious public threat at home and abroad due to their suspected involvement with Al-Qaeda.” He urged the men to turn themselves in to the authorities. Saudi Arabia routinely releases lists of wanted Al-Qaeda suspects. The country has aggressively battled the group since a series of attacks inside the Kingdom that began in 2003. The Al-Qaeda offshoot that recently established a new base in neighboring Yemen has carried out cross-border attacks in Saudi Arabia and is threatening more violence in the Kingdom.
