THREE people from Ilkley have been caught up in this week's devastating terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia.

Paul and Valerie Middleton, of Ben Rhydding, were woken in their Riyadh villa by the sudden rattling of windows at around 11.30pm on Monday. Oblivious to the fact that suicide bombers had just shot their way into the nearby Al Hamra complex and detonated several car bombs, the couple couldn't see what was wrong and went back to sleep.

But minutes later they were woken again, this time by the screams of sirens. And the day after the blast, 58-year-old Mr Middleton, who works for the Al Rajhi Bank, told the Ilkley Gazette: "Shortly after, we received a call from someone as part of the pre-arranged 'cascade warning system'.

"He told us that there had been a bomb at the Al Hamra compound, about a kilometre from here, a housing compound that also contains the British school where Valerie works.

"The rest of the night was taken up with phone calls and e-mails. Most of the school staff moved to Al Hamra in the last three months, 'for safety'.

"Fortunately all were well, apart from minor cuts, although one friend of ours had to go to hospital for treatment.

"Two colleagues of mine also live there; one had gone to Kuwait for a job interview, and we later tracked down the second, who was thankfully unharmed.

"The same couldn't be said of their flats and villas. This is a 300-metre square compound. According to the people we have spoken to, every single one has lost its windows, many have had their patio doors dislodged, and heavy front doors have been blown into interior rooms.

"Those were the buildings that were left standing. Many were flattened or are just shells.

"One person we know had been watching television, had got up when he heard a commotion, and had a narrow escape when the window blew in and a large shard of glass went through his just-vacated seat."

The Middletons were quick to let their son, Simon, who now lives in the family home in Ben Rhydding, and daughter Lucy, who works in Bradford, know they were safe.

The couple are now under armed guard, for their own protection, at their compound as the Saudi authorities try to thwart any further violence.

Another Ilkley man, who did not want to be named but who works for the same Saudi bank, was in the Al Hamra complex itself when the attack happened.

He has contacted his family back home to let them know he escaped injury, but his villa was so badly damaged that he is now looking for a new home.

No-one has yet claimed responsibility for Monday's outrage, which is believed to have been orchestrated to tie in with US Secretary of State Colin Powell's Saudi visit.

The Middletons are still not convinced they are safe from another attack, after hearing a graphic description of how Monday's bombing unfolded.

Mr Middleton said: "Al Hamra, like all compounds, has a perimeter wall, a heavy main gate that is normally closed except for access, and security guards on the gate and on patrol.

"Our compound manager, who heard the account from the Al Hamra staff, said a resident's car had just been allowed through when two cars and a multi-purpose vehicle 'tail-gated' through after it, firing at the guards with machine guns, throwing 'football-size' bombs out into the road, and shooting at anyone who happened to be around.

"They then drove each of the cars to an obviously planned spot - next to an apartment block, or next to the owner's house - and detonated the bombs.

"My colleague within Al Hamra, surveying the wreckage, believes the number killed in just this one compound could be 40 to 60. I pray to God that he is wrong, but that number would be consistent with the scale of damage.

"The two other compounds, being US-occupied and I believe defence-related, actually had armed guards in watch towers. These were attacked with machine guns, before a similar bomb attack took place."

The incident has left the Middletons shaken but they are unconvinced that they would be much safer anywhere else in the world, especially in the aftermath of the war in Iraq.

Mr Middleton said: "I've not had much time to sleep, but one thought occurs to me - how did the invasion of Iraq help in the 'War Against Terrorism'? To my simple mind, it looks as though it has just fuelled another escalation."

l US figures put the number killed in Monday's attacks at 91, while hundreds were injured.