RIYADH , Saudi Arabia -- Ahmad al Shayea is the rarest of truck bombers -- he survived his suicide mission in Iraq even though the blast from his bomb was strong enough to kill 12 bystanders . Ahmad al Shayea survived his truck bomb attack , but not without scarring to his face and hands . Al Shayea , who was disfigured during the attack , claims al Qaeda tricked him into becoming a bomber by asking him to deliver a tanker truck , which they had rigged with a bomb . `` They told me to take it to an address in Baghdad . As soon as I got there the truck exploded , '' said the native of Saudi Arabia . He survived by jumping out of the truck . Al Shayea renounced terrorism and returned to Saudi Arabia , where he works to convince would-be insurgents and terrorists to give up their deadly ways . `` I think God took me out of death to show others what can happen , '' he told CNN . `` If you join al Qaeda , they will use you , and maybe you will die . '' Hear why al Shayea turned his back on al Qaeda » . Al Qaeda propaganda videos glorify so-called foreign fighters in Iraq like al Shayea . It has recruited them from countries all across the Middle East . Some Iraqi officials say more Saudis than any other nationality have responded to al Qaeda 's call . Saudi officials and the U.S. military deny that claim . But Saudi sources do admit that more than 800 young Saudis have gone to Iraq to fight . That 's far more than the Saudi government has acknowledged until now . Since 9/11 , when 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudis , the oil rich kingdom has been accused of spreading radicalism . It 's a claim that stings this longtime U.S. ally , which also finds itself in al Qaeda 's cross hairs . So now , Saudi officials say they are escalating their fight against homegrown al Qaeda militants . Former insurgents and terrorists like al Shayea are their chief weapon in the battle for the hearts and minds of young Saudis . `` The reality behind it is the religious misunderstanding of Islam , so we have to correct the ideas , '' said Dr. Turki Al-Otayan , a psychologist . Al Shayea and hundreds of other Saudis who were aligned with terrorists are being re-educated in prisons and rehabilitation centers . They are taught that al Qaeda 's emphasis on a violent approach to Islam is wrong . The program offers early release from prison . It 's available only to captured jihadis who demonstrate a willingness to change over the course of repeated interviews with specialists . Al Shayea said he was questioned by security forces , then clerics , then psychologists . `` They looked at my mood , listened to me . They were nice , '' he adds . Al-Otayan said the review is thorough . `` We make sure he understands dialogue . We make sure he is not just lying . So it is not an easy job I can assure you , '' he said . The Saudi government says more than 1,000 former al Qaeda recruits have been through the program . Seven hundred of them are now free . Critics , mainly from the country 's security forces , fear mistakes could allow some al Qaeda fighters back on the street . A native of Saudi Arabia , al Shayea was just 19 when he went to Iraq to fight for al Qaeda against American forces . He was angered , he said , by scenes of U.S. troops killings his fellow Muslims . `` I went to Iraq with Saudi men because jihad is a duty for every Muslim , '' he said . `` I went to Iraq to fight the jihad and kill Americans . '' He was hoping to take up arms against Americans , but said he never envisioned himself as a suicide bomber . After his truck bomb exploded , al Shayea was captured and paraded on Iraqi TV . Burned and bandaged , he was blamed for the death of 12 bystanders . He confessed . Iraqi security officials deported him to Saudi Arabia . Today , with the backing of the Saudi government , al Shayea gets his anti-al Qaeda message out on fliers that include pictures of him before and after his bombing . He has become the anti-Al Qaeda example . `` I learned my lesson , and others will learn as well , '' he said . E-mail to a friend .
Ahmad al Shayea , a Saudi , survived his suicide bombing mission in Iraq . He says al Qaeda tricked him into delivering the truck bomb . Al Shayea now works with the Saudi government to battle al Qaeda propaganda . Comment: