The royal regime yesterday executed two citizens it said had joined a foreign terrorist group and plotted attacks on houses of worship and security personnel.
They were said to have possessed weapons and to have made explosives.
The names of the two men were published but specific information about their plans and affiliation was withheld.
They well may have been members of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), which has not staged a significant terrorist attack in Saudi Arabia since 2016.
Saudi security forces are proficient at detecting and arresting local operatives and supporters of ISIS.
A citizen was executed on 7 July for joining an unspecified terrorist organization, making explosives, and possessing firearms and ammunition. He also was convicted for harboring wanted individuals and concealing their terrorist plans, as well as financing terrorist activities.
Another citizen was executed on 9 April for joining a terrorist organization, making explosives, possessing firearms and ammunition, and harboring wanted individuals and concealing their terrorist plans. He was said to have participated in operational missions on behalf of the terrorist group, trained others in weapons and terror tactics, and financed terrorist activities within Saudi Arabia after returning home.
It is not clear if either man actively was planning terrorism.
But risks persist and Westerners are prime targets.
The tactics of ISIS operatives include suicide-bombing, shooting and kidnap-murder. Unsophisticated ISIS supporters could stage attacks against Westerners using weapons at hand, such as knives and vehicles.
Meanwhile, al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) operatives remain a serious threat despite significant inroads made against them by Saudi security forces in the past two decades.
Terrorism risks are higher at times of religious significance and heightened tensions between the West and the Muslim World.
Corporate personnel should keep a low profile, be alert constantly to their surroundings and carry a charged mobile phone with key numbers on speed dial. They should stick to business and to the extent practical curtail exposure to Western hangouts, such as restaurants, malls and fitness clubs. They ideally should inform trusted colleagues in advance of all movements and get around in vehicles handled by savvy local chauffeurs trained in protective driving. Prudence dictates situational awareness when exiting buildings and entering vehicles. Personnel in the country for more than a few days should vary movement times and routes and be alert for surveillances. They also should identify safe havens such as police stations and government buildings. Personnel should pass as quickly as possible through areas of airports open to the public.
Under a 2022 directive from the Tourism Ministry, business-class hotels across Saudi Arabia dropped driveway and lobby entrance security apparatus and inspections, making them more vulnerable to Islamic terrorist attacks.
Some high-end hotels responded by increasing foot patrols by uniformed security guards, activity by plainclothes guards and camera surveillance, as well as installing additional heavy planters along the driveway and instructing non-security staff how to be alert and respond to threats.
Under the new rules, elite hotels hosting major conferences and events or hosting VVIP guests are receiving temporary permission to employ delta barriers and other security hardware at driveway entrances and lobby-door screening, in some cases with armed personnel.
But the bottom line is that hotels are more vulnerable to terrorist attack.
In the view of this service, corporate apartments with solid private security are a reasonable alternative. Those who must stay in hotels should book rooms away from the driveway and parking lots and as distant as possible from the lobby, and should minimize time spent in the lobby and other common areas. For the most senior corporate executives, booking a room in a top-flight accommodation like the Ritz-Carlton in Riyadh or the Hilton in Jeddah theoretically brings with it the highest available level of hotel security.
