JEDDAH, 17 March 2004 — A suspicious envelope containing white powder sent to the Saudi Embassy has turned out to be harmless, according to British police. Similar packages were also sent to three other embassies in the British capital, all initially said to be Arab.
However, according to diplomats in London the others included the Iranian Embassy and the Pakistani High Commission.
The Saudi Embassy said that it had received the envelope containing white powder early on Monday, sparking a security alert. “It scared one of our security ladies,” a Saudi diplomat said, “but she is all right. She was treated at the embassy.”
“A closed envelope arrived at the embassy this morning containing white powder. The embassy contacted the British authorities who dealt with the matter on the spot,” an earlier embassy statement said.
It added that the embassy “has taken all the precautionary measures for the protection and safety of its employees.”
London’s Scotland Yard police department said: “Initial tests suggest that the contents are non-hazardous, but fuller tests are yet to be completed.”
Britain is currently in a heightened state of alert against a potential terrorist attack.
In the United States, letters containing deadly anthrax bacteria were sent to Congress in 2001, shortly after the Sept. 11 attacks in New York and Washington carried out by Al-Qaeda.
Other letters containing anthrax were received by US news organizations, and anthrax was also detected at a Washington post office. Five of the 22 people who became ill with anthrax died.
