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American Morning

Up to Two Thirds of Detainees at Guantanamo's Camp X-Ray May be Saudi Citizens

Aired January 29, 2002 - 07:05   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JACK CAFFERTY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For months, we have heard rumors of deepening discord between the United States and Saudi Arabia. Now we're learning that up to two thirds of the detainees at Guantanamo's Camp X-Ray may be Saudi citizens.

Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr is standing by now to explain why this could become yet another sore point in relations between the United States and Saudi Arabia -- good morning, Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Jack.

Well, the latest statements coming out of Saudi Arabia are from a man, Prince Nayef. He is the Saudi interior minister, a very senior and very influential member of the Saudi royal family.

And according to press reports this morning, he is asking the United States to return 100 Saudi citizens who are being held as detainees down at Guantanamo Bay as suspected members of the Taliban or the al Qaeda. He says the Saudi government wants those people back, wants to subject them to Saudi justice.

The U.S. has long said that it would return detainees to their home countries if it could be certain that they would face justice there, but that it's not going to happen until the U.S. finishes its interrogation.

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GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There's a lot of Saudi citizens that chose to fight for al Qaeda and/or the Taliban that we want to know more about. And if -- and so we'll make a decision on a case by case basis.

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STARR: And, Jack, that's right, the U.S. could be facing the same kind of tension, the same question with a number of other countries. Administration officials are now saying they're holding citizens from about 30 countries down at Guantanamo Bay -- Jack.

CAFFERTY: Barbara, a related story, a rare published interview the Saudi crown prince in which he says there is no tension between the United States and Saudi Arabia over that issue of American troops on Saudi soil. What's been the reaction in Washington to that story?

STARR: Well, of course, the Saudis always handle these types of matters very delicately. They would never publicly come out and oppose the U.S. presence. But that doesn't mean there isn't a problem. And from the U.S. point of view, this is all quite related. The U.S. is telling Saudi Arabia they have a major internal security problem in their own country. They have an awful lot of people that support Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda inside their own country and that that is the threat they ought to be worrying about, or at least that's the U.S. administration's point of view -- Jack.

CAFFERTY: Interesting stuff, what they say out loud and what it really means behind-the-scenes.

Barbara Starr at the Pentagon, appreciate it. Thank you.

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