Report by Abdullah Fahd Aba Al‑Jaish
Raich continues recounting the memories he compiled in his book A King in the East… A Journey to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In chapter eleven, titled “The Sixth Sense,” he describes the events that took place during his stop in Linah and his meeting with its governor.
In Linah, Raich remembered that he needed to notify the Tapline team at the Qaisumah station of his arrival. The governor granted them permission to proceed to the locust‑control team and assigned a soldier to accompany them. The distance from Linah to the locust team’s camp was roughly 150 kilometers. Raich was astonished by the young soldier’s remarkable knowledge of directions and desert routes. The soldier walked confidently toward his destination without asking questions or pausing. His instinct, Raich noted, could not be explained scientifically — it was the sixth sense of the desert people.
They continued through the desert following the guidance of the soldier, whose name was Ibrahim, until they reached a point where Raich stopped to survey the area with binoculars. He turned to Ibrahim and asked where the camp was. Ibrahim pointed toward a sand dune and said the camp was behind it — that he could see the team’s vehicles and tents. Raich and Rolf were irritated, thinking the soldier was mocking them. Nevertheless, they followed him until their vehicle became stuck in the sand.
They sent Ibrahim on foot to seek help from the camp’s residents. While Raich and Rolf waited under the scorching sun, two vehicles appeared carrying foreigners and Saudis who rescued them and escorted them to the locust team’s camp. The next day, Raich and Rolf realized that Ibrahim had indeed been truthful — he really had seen the camp from behind the dunes.
A Foreign Expert: “Saudi Arabia… the Safest Country in the World”
In chapter twelve, the author describes the locust‑control camp in the Saudi desert. The camp belonged only to the sixth and seventh teams and consisted of four old British military tents equipped with iron beds, folding tables, a gasoline‑powered stove, a telescope, a typewriter, a wireless radio, and various supplies. Their vehicles were Land Rovers, and the team was constantly on the move, following locust swarms wherever they appeared.
Coincidentally, during Raich’s visit, Phil Kircher, the head of all locust‑control teams in Saudi Arabia, arrived from his main office in Jeddah. From there, he communicated with all teams via wireless radio and ensured they received food, fuel, and supplies. The teams used spray aircraft to kill locusts.
Raich recalls asking Kircher why he chose to work in Saudi Arabia. Kircher replied:
“For me, Saudi Arabia is the safest country in the world. Every Bedouin here sees the few foreigners living among them as guests of the King — yes, guests of the King! He may well be the only true king in this age. He is an absolute monarch… and what he commands is the guiding principle for Saudi citizens and for the few Europeans living here.”
During their stay with the locust team, Raich and Rolf witnessed one of the locust‑eradication operations and learned about the structure of the locust‑control program in the Kingdom, which consisted of fourteen teams, each made up of six men and a Saudi policeman who submitted reports directly to His Majesty the King.
Hafar Al‑Batin and Qaisumah… A Fortress, Modernity, and a Crossroads