The United States has acknowledged that Islamic
insurgents in Saudi Arabia have acquired anti-aircraft weapons meant to down
U.S. warplanes.
Officials said Saudi insurgents, believed linked to Al Qaida, have
acquired Soviet-origin surface-to-air missiles. They said the insurgents are
seeking to down a U.S. warplane in the kingdom in an effort to terminate the
American military presence.
Earlier this month, Saudi security forces found an SA-7 missile tube
outside Prince Sultan Air Base, Middle East Newsline reported. The base is regard as the main command and
control center for U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf.
Officials said they still have not determined who brought the
anti-aircraft weapon to the base. But they said the U.S. military has
ordered measures to protect U.S. planes deployed in Saudi Arabia from a
missile attack.
Gen. Peter Pace, vice chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said
he could not rule out that the SA-7 was fired at a U.S. plane. He said
insurgents might have dropped the missile tube outside the air base.
"Regardless, we take very seriously the fact that that our opponents do
have surface-to-air missiles, shoulder-fired surface-to-air-missiles," Pace
said on Thursday. "And we take precautions on the ground and in the air any
time we have our aircraft arriving or departing."
Officials said that after a month of investigation the U.S. military has
not been provided with answers regarding who is behind the SA-7 episode.
They said that so far Saudi authorities have not found any significant
leads.
