Source: Arab News
Saudi Arabia has suffered a total of 208 deaths and 1,127 injuries from 51 terror attacks since 1979, the government said on Tuesday, in a move to dispel malicious and seemingly orchestrated reports tagging the Kingdom as a sponsor of terrorism.
“A number of international media institutions and organs have recently circulated shocking information on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s link to terrorism, with the consolidation of an idea of a Saudi main role in the industry of terrorism in terms of thought and sponsorship,” said a government statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
Had these media organizations been objective, they would noticed that the sheer magnitude of attacks in the Kingdom only shows that Saudi Arabia had actually been a victim of terrorism, it said, citing attacks that had been linked to the Al-Qaeda and Daesh international terrorist networks.
At the height of Al-Qaeda’s worldwide rampage more than a decade ago, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif, who is also now deputy premier and minister of interior, was the target of an assassination attempt as he engineered the Ministry of Interior’s anti-terrorism crackdown. The campaign successfully suppressed Al-Qaeda’s threats, resulting in the deaths of scores of terrorists and capture of many more.
Below is a chronology of terror attacks against the Kingdom as listed by SPA:
- On Nov. 20, 1979, an armed attack took place at the Grand Mosque in Makkah (Juhayman incident) and 28 terrorists were killed and 17 injured.
- In 1995, an explosion took place at the United States Military Mission headquarters in Riyadh, which resulted in the deaths of five Americans and two Indians and injury of 60 people.
- On June 25, 1996, explosion in Al-Khobar killed 19 people, all Americans, and wounded 386 others.
- On Nov. 17, 2000, explosion in central Riyadh killed one Briton and wounded another.
- On Nov. 22, 2000, an explosion in Sulaymaniyah, Riyadh wounded 3 Britons.
- On Jan. 10, 2001, an explosion hit a shopping center in Riyadh.
- On Feb. 5, 2001, an explosion in Riyadh killed one person and wounded another.In March 2001, an explosion took place in Riyadh.
- In February 2002, an explosion occurred in Riyadh.
- On June 20, 2002, an explosion tin Riyadh killed one Briton.
- On September 29, 2002, an explosion in Sulaimaniya, Riyadh killed one person.
- On May 12, 2003, explosions occurred at three compounds housing Westerners and Arabs in Riyadh, killing 20 people and injuring 194 others.
- On May 12, 2003, an explosion in the city of Turbah on the road to Hail killed two people and injured two others.
- On June 3, 2003, an explosion killed one person at a naval base.
- In November 2003, a bomb at Al-Muhaya residential compound in Riyadh killed 12 people and wounded 22 more.
- On 21 April, 2004, an explosion at Traffic General Department building in Riyadh killed five people and injured 148 others.
- In May 2004, an explosion in Yanbu killed six people and injured 14 others.
- On May 29, 2004, a shooting attack at Oasis residential compound in Al-Khobar, resulted in the deaths of dozens.
- On June 6, 2004, a shooting attack in Al-Suwadi district, Riyadh killed one person and injured another.
- On Dec. 6, 2004, a shooting at the United States Consulate building in Jeddah resulted in the deaths of several people, including three gunmen.
- On Dec. 29, 2004, an explosion at the Interior Ministry main office in Riyadh injured one person.
- On Dec. 29, 2004, an explosion hit the headquarters of Training Center of Special Emergency Forces in Riyadh.
- On June 18, 2005, terrorists assassinated Lieutenant Colonel Mubarak Al-Sawat in the suburb of Al-Sharie in Makkah.
- On Feb. 24, 2006, an explosion at Abqaiq oil refineries killed two people.
- On May 12 2006, a shooting attack occurred at the United States consulate in Jeddah.
- In June 2006, a shooting attack in Riyadh resulted in the deaths of six people.
- In February 2007, an explosion occurred in archaeological Madain Saleh area, killing four people.
- On June 9, 2011, shootings occurred on the border with Yemen, killing two people and injuring another.
- On Nov. 5, 2012, shootings in Sharourah province on the border with Yemen resulted in the deaths of two people.
- On July 3, 2014, an explosion in Al-Wadeah point on the border with Yemen resulted in the deaths of five people.
- On Jan. 5 2015 a shooting and a suicide bombing happened at Al-Seuf border center in Arar resulting in the deaths of five people, including two attackers and wounding two people.
- On Feb. 8, 2015 a fire shooting event happened in Riyadh resulted in the deaths of two people.
- On May 22, 2015, a suicide bombing happened in Qudayh resulted in killing 22 people and wounding 102.
- On May 29, 2015, a bombing happened in Al-Anoud district in Dammam, resulting in the deaths of four people and injury to four others.
- On July 16, 2015, a car bomb explosion occurred in the city of Riyadh resulted in the death of one person and injuring two people.
- On Aug. 6, 2015, a suicide bombing happened at Emergency Forces Mosque in Abha resulting in the deaths of 12 people and injuring seven people.
- On Sept. 24, 2015, a hooting in Al-Chemli in Hail region killed five people.
- On Oct. 16, 2015, a shooting in Seihat in the province of Qatif killed 5 people and wounding nine others.
- On Oct. 26, 2015, a suicide bombing in Najran resulted in the deaths of two people and injuring 27 others.
- On Jan. 29, 2016, a suicide bombing at Al-Ridha Mosque in Al-Ahsa killed four people, including two security men and wounding 18 others.
- On Feb. 27, 2016, a shooting happened in Qassim killed one person.
- On April 4, 2016, an explosive device exploded in Al-Kharj city, killing one person.
- On April 6, 2016, a shooting event happened in Riyadh, killing one person.
- On 16 April 2016, a shooting attack occurred in Qatif.
- On April 30, 2016, an explosive device exploded in Al-Ahsa.
- On June 27, 2016, a shooting attack in Qatif resulted in the death of one person.
- On July 4, 2016 a suicide bombing occurred in the holy city of Madinah resulting in the deaths of four security men and wounding of 5 other people.
- On July 4, 2016, a suicide bombing occurred in Qatif, resulting in the deaths of three people.
- On July 4, 2016, a suicide bombing in the city of Jeddah near the US consulate.
- On Aug. 15, 2016, a running-over incident happened in Asir region, resuling in the death of one person.
- On Aug. 18, 2016, a shooting attack occurred in the city of Qatif, resulting in the death of one person.
