Unmanned US military aircraft are searching the Empty Quarter, a sprawling desert in Saudi Arabia, where al-Qaeda members are believe to be hiding.
The members of Osama bin Laden's group are thought to move between Yemen and the Saudi desert where they seek refuge among the Bedouin nomadic tribes in the area, Yemeni officials told the New York Times daily Wednesday.
"They are moving around in a pickup truck with a simple tent on the top and probably a Bedouin who knows the Rub al-Khali (the Saudi name for Empty Quarter) like you know the palm of your hand," Yemen presidental advisor Abdul Karim Iryani told the paper.
"That is how they have been avoiding the government and your U.S. drones," he was quoted as saying in Sana'a. "They are basically looking for movement within the desert, unusual movement, of cars and so forth," said Yemeni Foreign Minister, Abubaker al-Qirbi.
"They are moving in a highly underpopulated area of the country. It's mostly desert and mountains." The Yemeni officials said the fugitives are wanted for terrorist operations in Yemen, including the October 2000 bombing of the US destroyer Cole, and some perhaps have fled to the region from Afghanistan. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
