France criticizes the weakness of the Saudi security apparatus in holding world events.
French officials have openly criticized Saudi Arabia for its lack of security at major world events and events, including the Dakar Rally.
France has accused Saudi Arabia of trying to cover up a recent terrorist attack in the country during a Dakar Rally in which a French athlete fell into a coma.
According to the British website Al-Arabi, an explosion took place outside a hotel in Jeddah last week, seriously injuring French driver Philippe Butron and taking him to a hospital in France, where he is still under anesthesia.
“We told the organizers and the Saudi officials to be very clear about what happened, because there is a hypothesis that it was a terrorist attack,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in a radio and television interview. . »
Laudrian added that French inspectors will travel to Saudi Arabia. The bomber struck shortly after noon in front of a police station.
The procedure for collecting initial evidence by the Saudi public security department found “no criminal suspicion,” but last week the French prosecutor announced that a terrorism investigation had been launched. “There may have been a terrorist attack on the Dakar Rally,” the French prosecutor added.
The Dakar Rally has been held in Saudi Arabia for the past three years, and the event is seen as an attempt by the conservative country to reform its image and open its doors to the world and its citizens.
