Saudi diplomatic missions in New Delhi and Mumbai have issued a warning to Saudis in India after being alerted of an Al-Qaeda threat of attacks, an embassy official said. Indian intelligence authorities stated that Al-Qaeda was planning attacks on the Saudi Consulate and the Saudi Airlines office in Mumbai, and Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAA) flights arriving in the city, according to the head of the Citizens Affairs Department at the Saudi Embassy in New Delhi. Mumbai Police, including its Anti-Terrorist Squad, have been told to beef up security at the airport and the Saudi Consulate, the official said. No change had been made to SAA schedules because of the threat perception, the official said. The approximately 350 Saudi university students in India have been told to remain indoors and avoid crowded areas. “We have been told to beef up security and to be on our toes,” a senior police official told DNA newspaper on condition of anonymity. “Just not the Saudi consulate, the cops are also checking Saudi interests in the city to make sure there is no untoward incident.” The official added that intelligence alerts about terrorist organizations, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba, Harkat-ul-Jehadi-Islami and Jaish-e-Mohammed, were frequently received from intelligence agencies. “We take all these intelligence alerts very seriously. But when it comes to Al-Qaeda, we need to be more vigilant. Their style of functioning is far superior and deadly as compared to other terror organizations. This threat is all the more important as it mentions airlines and airplanes. We all know what Al-Qaeda did on 9/11 in the US,” he said. Vinay Karegaonkar, additional commissioner of police (protection and security), told the paper, “Security at important locations in the city is always high, as they are prone to terror threats. We do take such intelligence inputs seriously and beef up the security.” Similar Al-Qaeda threats were reportedly received last month by Saudi missions in Pakistan, the Philippines and Kuwait.
