London: A group linked to al Qaeda has called on Saudis to oust Saudi Arabia`s ruling family and threatened attacks against the kingdom, a group that monitors Islamist websites said on Friday.
The Brigades of Abdullah Azzam said the ruling family deserved to be toppled because of its extravagant spending, ignorance of the needs of the people, "collusion" with the United States and failure to allow Saudis to benefit from the country`s oil revenues, the Site Intelligence Group said.
"The regime of al-Saud should know that our war with them will happen for as long as they maintain their disbelief, oppression, mightiness and belligerence against the religion of the Almighty, and that the heads of this regime and its henchmen are legitimate targets for the mujahideen," SITE quoted the statement as saying.
Protests against poverty, corruption and oppression have raged across the Arab world for weeks, toppling entrenched leaders in Egypt and Tunisia and spreading to Bahrain, linked to Saudi Arabia -- the world`s top oil exporter -- by a causeway.
Hundreds of people have backed a call on Facebook for a "day of rage" in Saudi Arabia on March 11 to demand an elected ruler, greater freedom for women and the release of political prisoners.
The statement by the Brigades of Abdullah Azzam praised the ousting of the Tunisian and Egyptian presidents.
"The regime of Saud is on top of the Arab regimes in terms of disbelief and in terms of fighting the religion of Allah, allying with the unbelievers, spoiling the people, plundering and oppressing them, and preventing them from having their legal rights," said the statement.
The group said in August that one of its suicide bombers attacked a Japanese supertanker in the Strait of Hormuz.
In 2005, a group using the same name said it carried out deadly bombings at the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh and claimed responsibility for firing rockets at two US warships in Jordan`s Aqaba port.
Bureau Report
