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Saudi bomb blast suspect bound for U.S.

Sayegh June 16, 1997
Web posted at: 7:52 p.m. EDT (2352 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A Saudi man jailed in Canada as a suspect in the bombing of a U.S. military barracks in Saudi Arabia last year is expected to be flown within days to the United States, sources told CNN.

Hani al-Sayegh will be escorted by FBI agents from Ottawa to Washington where he is expected to appear in federal court this week. Federal law enforcement officials believe al-Sayegh served as the lookout driver in last year's blast at Khobar Towers near Dhahran. Nineteen U.S. airmen were killed.

Canadian sources said al-Sayegh remained in his Ottawa cell Monday, but acknowledged his status would be changing "soon."

Justice Department officials refused comment. But sources told CNN U.S. officials have negotiated with al-Sayegh about the circumstances of his transfer.

Bombing

Last month a Canadian federal judge ordered al-Sayegh expelled for his alleged role in the bomb plot. Under Canadian law he could have been deported to his native Saudi Arabia, as well as the United States, where the suspect changed planes briefly en route to Canada last summer.

Canadian sources said al-Sayegh resisted being returned to Saudi Arabia, where he feared execution. But he initially balked at cutting a deal with the United States to keep him from being sent to Riyadh.

Al-Sayegh is believed to be a member of "Saudi Hezbollah," a group strongly opposed to the ruling regime in Saudi Arabia and its alliance with Washington.

Al-Sayegh contacted the Iranian embassy in Ottawa after his arrival in Canada, sources said. Saudi authorities have indicated Iran may have been behind the Khobar Towers bombing.

For months U.S. counter-terrorism agents have wanted to interrogate al-Sayegh thoroughly about the bombing. During a Canadian deportation hearing last month he was given a chance to answer charges that he took part in the plot, but he refused to testify.

Expelling al-Sayegh from Canada has proven to be a politically thorny issue. The United States and Saudi Arabia both want custody, and the two governments have at times feuded publicly over the bombing investigation.

 
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