Saudis free 1,500 rehabilitated extremists

WASHINGTON, Nov. 26 (UPI) -- Saudi Arabia has released from jail more than 1,500 men authorities say have renounced their ideology of Taqfir, or Islamic extremism.

In an interview with al-Watan newspaper, a member of a special committee set up by the Interior Ministry to rehabilitate those jailed in Saudi Arabia's crackdown on al-Qaida and its sympathizers in the kingdom said the prisoners had undergone lengthy counseling prior to their renunciation of Taqfir, an ideology that brands as an apostate any Muslim who disagrees with their extremist interpretation of Islam.

Excerpts of the interview with Muhammad al-Nujaimi, a member of the Counseling Committee and professor of comparative jurisprudence at the King Fahd Security College, were translated Monday by the Arab News Web site.

Al-Nujaimi told the paper that the Counseling Committee was set up in 2004 by Prince Muhammad ibn Naif, assistant minister of interior for security affairs. Reports earlier this year said that the prince had personally met some of the youths being rehabilitated and was paying wedding expenses for some of the Saudis returned by the United States from detention at Guantanamo Bay.

The committee's work is jointly overseen by the ministries of the Interior and Islamic Affairs, Arab News said, and it is made up of 100 "religious scholars, preachers, specialists in religious doctrine and law, psychologists and social workers."

"The committee has met around 5,000 times to offer counseling to 3,200 people, who were accused of embracing the Taqfir ideology," al-Nujaimi told al-Watan. "The committee has successfully completed reforming 1,500 people."

He did not say what had happened to the other 1,700 prisoners.

He told the paper the prisoners had been confused about the meaning of jihad, which they had interpreted as justifying violence against apostates and infidels, including "Muslim rulers, scholars and public."

"After several graded sessions with the committee, and having been convinced of their misguided vision, they renounced their erroneous ideologies, including the concept of driving out all infidels from the Arabian Peninsula," he said.