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Three Britons Confess to Bomb Blasts on Saudi Television
RIYADH, Aug 13 (News Agencies) - Three British men confessed on Saudi television Monday to responsibility for three bomb blasts in Saudi Arabia between December 2000 and March 2001.
The three men, James Lee, James Cottle and Les Walker, gave detailed confessions with maps of three attacks, two in Riyadh and one in the eastern city of Khobar, that left two other Britons and an Egyptian injured.
Two similar bombings in November 2000 killed one man.
They had "received orders" to carry out the attacks, the trio said without elaborating.
Lee, who said he worked at a military hospital in Riyadh, said he and Cottle had been recruited in November to carry out the blasts.
Cottle said he worked for a private construction firm while Walker worked for an investment company.
The three men confessed to the December 15th blast in Khobar that targeted British citizen David Brown, wounding him in the shoulder, throat and stomach.
They also confessed to the January 10th explosion at the entrance of a shopping center in Riyadh, which caused no injuries.
They also admitted guilt for a third blast on March 15th outside a bookshop in the center of the Saudi capital that left one Briton and one Egyptian slightly wounded.
The three suspects, speaking English in a calm and relaxed manner, confessed to planting all three bombs before detonating them by remote control.
The state-run television ran sub-titles and Arabic dubbing throughout the confessions.
A Saudi official told Agence France Press (AFP) news agency that authorities had decided not to release details on the identity of those who ordered the bomb attacks until the end of the investigation, which they stressed was ongoing.
If found guilty, the three men could face death under Islamic Shari'ah laws implemented in the conservative kingdom.
Ex-British soldier Alexander Mitchell, Canadian William Sampson and Belgian Raf Skivens were put on state television in February to confess to two bombings last November that killed one Briton. They could also face the death penalty.
In other news, Saudi authorities announced the arrest of 12 expatriates in what is believed to be a link to the lucrative business of alcohol bootlegging in the "dry" Gulf monarchies.
All of those arrested were reportedly either members or shareholders of four underground drinking dens in the kingdom.
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