Saudia Arabia arrests 10 for fundraising to 'drag the sons of the nation to disturbed places'

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia: Saudi police have arrested 10 people for collecting donations and recruiting on behalf of militant groups, the interior ministry spokesman said Saturday.

The arrests follow claims in the U.S. bipartisan Iraq Study Group report issued in December that Saudi Arabia has been a source of funding for the Sunni insurgency in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq deposed Saddam Hussein in 2003.

The Saudi Ministry of Interior issued a statement Jan. 22 warning against collecting donations for groups not registered with the government.

"Security special forces, as part of their efforts in fighting terrorism and its funding, managed to arrest a group of people carrying out illegal activities including collecting donations illegally ... and sending them to suspected parties," Mansour al-Turki, the Interior Ministry spokesman said in a statement.

Recipients of the donations used the money in "dragging the sons of the nation to disturbed places," the statement said, apparently referring to Iraq.

Read the rest at the International Herald Tribune

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