Sagar Biswas :
The Bangladesh government has taken precautionary measures after Saudi Arabian Embassy in Dhaka urged the concerned authorities to ensure safety of Saudi Airlines aircraft in the wake of terror threat issued by a militant group allegedly based in Iran.
“They [Saudi Embassy] sent a letter in this regardlast week. It is not for Bangladesh only. So far as we know, Saudi Arabian government has sent such letters to different countries where their planes land. Especially, they are afraid of some Asian countries, particularly Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia,” AHM Ziaul Hoque, Joint Secretary of Civil Aviation and Tourism Ministry, told The New Nation on Tuesday.
Officials of Bangladesh Civil Aviation and Tourism Ministry said that they have taken adequate safety measures in and around all the airports, including Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, after getting formal request from the Saudi Embassy.
Apparently, the request of Saudi Arabia came soon after the authorities of Philippines foiled a bid to hijack a Saudi Arabian Airlines plane at Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport on February 24.
According to a Manila-based newspaper, the authorities thwarted the plan and seized secret documents that confirm the plot. The paper said a team of 10 conspirators left Iran recently on separate flights and arrived in several countries in Southeast Asia through Turkey. They were plotting to execute their plan in Malaysia, Indonesia, or the Philippines.
The newspaper further said, the Saudi Embassy in Manila had asked the airport authorities in that country to install screening devices to tighten security procedures for passengers travelling on the Saudi aircraft. Accordingly, the request was submitted to the competent authorities in the Philippines.
In this backdrop, State Minister for Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam yesterday said that his Ministry has been giving high importance to the ‘request’ of Saudi Embassy in Dhaka.
“We have already informed the matter to the concerned Ministries and asked them to increase vigilance. Besides, the Foreign Ministry is also dealing with the matter seriously. Bangladesh is determined to resist terrorism. So, the government will not give chance to anybody to create a plot of such terrorism,” the Minister said. Sources close to the Foreign Ministry said that the Saudi Embassy’s letter which was sent to Ministry had apprehended that the Revolutionary Guard of Iran planned to hijack and bomb Saudi aircraft. The letter also said Saudi Arabian government has identified six persons out of ten who are Yemeni nationals and also the members of a gang deployed by Iranian authority to hijack or bomb Saudi planes. In fact, the conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran ignited again when protesters set fire to the Saudi Embassy in Tehran and attacked its consulate in another Iranian city in response to the Kingdom’s execution of a prominent Shiite cleric on January 2. The protests prompted Saudi Arabia to cut diplomatic ties with Iran, escalating tensions between the longtime regional rivals. “We are in constant contact with all stakeholders to ensure the safety of our aircraft and its passengers ……….. Aircraft security is an international responsibility. Aviation Security Departments at Saudia are working with other agencies to boost security,” Abdulrahman Al-Fahad, a spokesman for Saudi Arabian Airlines, recently said.
On February 22, the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Manila notified the Department of Foreign Affairs [DFA] that the Saudi government received from concerned authorities that the “Iranian Revolutionary Guards” are allegedly initiating and supervising a plan to hijack or bomb a Saudi Arabian airplane. As the names of suspected attackers have been withheld from media, immigration officials are asked to remain alert to their entry into the country, official sources said.
