RIYADH, Jan 5: The United States has released 12 Saudi nationals detained for questioning after the Sept 11 attacks on US cities, Saudi Ambassador to the US Prince Bandar ibn Sultan was reported as saying here on Saturday. Four of those released were reported to be heading home while the others remained in the US.

The ambassador said most of the Saudis held in the United States were detained for violating immigration laws, traffic laws or other minor incidents. No figures on Saudis still being held in the US were given in the report.

Washington launched massive investigation after the September attacks which, it claimed, were staged by supporters of Osama bin Laden.

The investigations involved questioning more than 5,000 foreign men, including a large number of Pakistanis and Saudis, aged 18 to 33, who entered the US on non-immigrant visas after Jan 1, 2000. The Justice Department last month said it had nearly finished questioning them.

CASH FLOWS BACK: Meanwhile, in an unprecedented move some Saudi riyals 90 billion (US$24 billion) have been pumped back into the Kingdom’s economy from overseas after the Sept 11 attacks, it was reported here. This inward cash flow has made the supply side reach a figure of SR328 billion ($88 billion) by end-November.

Analysts here have attributed this unprecedented phenomenon to the fear of investors about restrictions on the transfer of investments that have been concentrated in the US and Europe. According to a study conducted by the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA), the Saudi private investments in the west are estimated at between $400 and $800 billion.