Saudi security forces kill two in Riyadh raid
Saudi security forces killed two wanted militants and arrested a third after storming a residential area in Riyadh today.
Interior Ministry Spokesman Mansour al-Turki said security forces were carrying out a “security ambush” in a villa at al-Massef, a residential area north of Riyadh that began at 6am local time.
“The police suspect one or more of the wanted elements are in this place,” he said.
Another security official said two militants were killed in a shoot-out with the police and a third was arrested trying to flee the scene.
The militants fired a grenade from inside the villa at police, but it didn’t explode.
Police are still surrounding the area, as more militants are believed to be inside.
The security official did not say whether the three were Saudi nationals or on the government’s list of 36 most-wanted militants, sought in connection to terror attacks against the kingdom dating back to 2003.
Security forces sealed off the area and prevented pedestrians and vehicles from entering or leaving the scene of the shoot-out.
Since May 2003, Islamic militants have carried out numerous suicide bombings and kidnappings and have regularly battled security forces. The attacks, which have tended to target Westerners and housing complexes were Westerners live, have been blamed on al-Qaida and its allies.
Saudi forces claim to have the upper hand against terror cells, killing or capturing all but three of the figures on a previous most-wanted list of 25 militants.
