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March 24, 2006 |
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THE MINISTER OF THE INTERIOR STRESSES THE ENDEAVOUR OF THE SAUDI LEADERSHIP TO DEVELOP THE BORDER GUARDS. PRINCE NAIF VOWS TO EQUIP THE BORDER CORPS WITH THE LATEST TECHNOLOGIES. PRINCE NAIF DELIVERS CERTIFICATES OF RECOGNITION TO THE MARTYRS. Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Interior, opened Assir Region's border guard command building in Abha, Assir Region. He was received at the venue by Prince Khalid Al-Faisal Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Assir Region, Prince Faisal Ibn Khalid Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Governor of Assir Region, Lieutenant General Talal Ibn Mohsen Al-Anqawi, Director General of the Border Guard, Major General Mohammed Al Biyali, Commander of the Border Guard in Assir, and senior officials. Upon arrival, Prince Naif unveiled the plaque, announcing the opening of the building. Then he toured the facility of nearly 100,000 sq. m. area and was briefed on its contents. Addressing the opening ceremony, Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz said the border guard members are the country's front line of defense. He vowed to make one of the well-equipped border corps in the world soon. Saudi Arabia's border is more than 8800 kilometers long, he said. The event was attended by Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, Prince Nawaf Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, Prince Fahd Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz and senior civil and military officials. Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Interior had arrived in Abha. He was received at Abha Regional Airport by Prince Khalid Al-Faisal Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Assir Region, Prince Faisal bin Khalid Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Governor of Assir Region, and senior officials. Prince Naif was accompanied by Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, Prince Nawaf Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, and Prince Fahd Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz. Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Interior, graced in Abha a dinner party held by Assir Region Governorate in his honor on the occasion of his visit to the region. Upon arrival at the venue, Prince Naif was received by Prince Khalid Al-Faisal Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Assir Region, Prince Faisal Ibn Khalid Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Governor of Assir Region, and senior officials. A speech ceremony was held on this occasion. Addressing the audience, Prince Naif said that they have been sincere and loyal to the religion, the leadership and the homeland, noting that the Kingdom was founded on the fundamental principles of the Holy Quran and Prophet's tradition. Prince Naif pointed out that security men have confronted the deviants over the past years and sacrificed themselves to maintain the homeland's security. Those who have been killed are martyrs, he said and added that many deviants have been defeated and in the near future you will know how many terrorist operations have been aborted by security men which might lead to killing many people and destroying governmental and non-governmental utilities. Security men have achieved full success in all their actions, the Prince said. You have known these actions and others you do not know for security reasons, he noted and stated that these actions will be announced soon. The Prince indicated that every citizen will know what security men have done, stressing that security men are citizens and vice versa. Prince Naif stressed that security men will sacrifice everything for preserving this religion, and the dear homeland. The party was attended by Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, Prince Nawaf Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, Prince Fahd Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, senior officials and citizens. Interior Minister Prince Naif opened the command headquarters of the Border Guards in Asir while announcing the official shifting of the headquarters from Dhahran Al-Janoub to Abha. Prince Naif honored the kin of the 141 martyrs of the Border Guards who lost their lives in the line of duty apart from 178 distinguished officers and soldiers of various ranks. To mark the occasion the Border Guards command in Asir organized a function displaying the latest programs of the force including its sea and land operations and monitoring systems. Asir Governor Prince Khaled Al-Faisal and Deputy Governor Prince Faisal ibn Khaled attended the function. Border Guards Director General Lt. Gen. Talal Al-Angawi was also present at the occasion. In an interview over telephone with Arab News, Lt. Gen. Al-Angawi categorically denied any person from the Saudi side of the borders slipping into Iraq. "The administration did not record any statistics during the past year because no infiltration took place across the Saudi border," the director general said. Al-Angawi said in the interview that the Border Guards is the first line of defense before all other security forces in the Kingdom. Al-Angawi explained that besides guarding the borders against smuggling and illegal entries, the guards undertake rescue operations in the sea and protection of country's ports. He put the number of people who attempted illegal entry into the country at roughly half a million last year while most of them were in the southern province of Jizan. He also said 287 weapons, 100,000 rounds of ammunitions and large quantities of contraband such as narcotic drugs and intoxicants, including five million kilograms of Qat (leaves containing a natural amphetamine) were impounded last year. The lieutenant general also appreciated the cooperation from the Yemeni authorities following the security agreement with that country in various operations. Prince Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Interior, left Abha on Wednesday evening. He was seen off at Abha Regional Airport by Prince Khalid Al-Faisal Ibn Abdul Aziz, the Governor of Assir Region, Prince Faisal Ibn Khalid Ibn Abdul Aziz, Deputy Governor of Assir Region, and senior officials. Prince Naif was accompanied by Prince Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, Prince Nawaf Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz, and Prince Fahd Ibn Naif Ibn Abdul Aziz. |
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