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Al Qaeda Attack Against Ramadan Pilgrims Foiled

Saudi Arabia Says It Foiled Qaeda attack against Ramadan Pilgrims

On Tuesday the saudi kingdom announced that security forces halted a plot hatched by Al-Qaeda fighters to kill pilgrims who throng the holy city of Mecca during the fasting month of Ramadan.

Saudi Arabia's interior minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz said the crackdown on presumed Islamist activists stepped up since May 12 triple bombings in Riyadh had been "successful and fruitful."

The minister said there was a "good level of coordination" between Saudi Arabia and the United States in the so-called anti-terror fight, and described ties between the two countries as "historic."

He said political reforms must be compatible with Islamic tenets and the absence of democracy can in no way justify terrorism.

Saudi Arabia announced last month it would hold its first ever polls within a year to elect half the members of new municipal councils.

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