Saudis Challenge US on Claims About Iraq

WASHINGTON - The Saudi government challenged the Bush administration Tuesday to prove its claims that Saudi citizens have traveled to Iraq to fight American troops, and said U.S. forces have failed to secure their side of the border.

"We are very concerned about this issue because we would like to take action," Saudi foreign policy adviser Adel al-Jubeir said in an interview with The Associated Press. "But we have no evidence of Saudis crossing into Iraq and we have received no evidence from the U.S. government."

Al-Jubeir said his government has offered to send its own team of investigators to help U.S. officials identify any possible Saudi expatriate who may have come through other countries, like Iran, or who made it through the porous, desert borders between Iraq and the Saudi kingdom.

"We are willing to send a team to Iraq to look at any evidence they might have," he said. "Saudi Arabia is determined to fight terrorism and to prosecute terrorists regardless of where they are."

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