Intended Targets, Motivation and Attribution For The Attack
Kidnappers asked the hostages if they were Christian or Muslim, letting the Muslims go, and slitting the throats of non-Muslims.
A previously unheard-of militant group calling itself "The Jerusalem Squadron" -- a local Saudi Arabia-based faction of al-Qaeda -- claimed responsibility and said it was attacking "Zionists and Crusaders" who are in Saudi Arabia to "steal our oil and resources". An audio tape was released in which Abdulaziz al-Muqrin, thought to be one of al-Qaeda's leaders in Saudi Arabia, took responsibility. On the tape he said "among the killed was a Japanese who was slaughtered because USA have mixed his tribe into the war against Muslims."
According to the Saudi Ambassador in Washington, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, the goal of the terrorists was to shake Saudi Arabia's stability and economy.
Read more about this topic: 2004 Khobar Massacre
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