Saudi Arabia arrests 9 US citizens linked to terrorism

Saudi Arabia has arrested 33 terrorism suspects, including nine US citizens, but it is not yet clear whether they are linked to the Islamic State militant group.

Four US citizens were arrested on January 25 and five US citizens were arrested in the past four days, the Saudi Gazette reported yesterday, citing an unnamed source. Washington confirmed it was aware of the information but declined to give details.

Saudi Arabian security forces arrest an activist. Illustration photo: Alalam.

"We are aware of reports that some US citizens are being detained in Saudi Arabia," a US State Department official told AFP. "The State Department will carry out its obligation to assist US citizens abroad. For privacy reasons, we will not comment further."

The remaining 24 people arrested include 14 Saudis, three Yemenis, two Syrians, and five people from Indonesia, the Philippines, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kazakhstan, and Palestine, respectively.

The newspaper did not specify whether the “terrorist suspects” were linked to the Islamic State (IS), which has claimed responsibility for several deadly attacks targeting security forces and Shiite Muslims in Saudi Arabia since 2015.

Saudi Arabia's interior ministry said yesterday it was still hunting nine suspects in connection with a suicide bombing at a church in the southern city of Abha in August that killed 15 people. IS claimed responsibility for the attack.

Saudi Arabia is offering rewards ranging from $276,000 to $1.87 million for information leading to the capture of a terrorist suspect or the foiling of an attack plot.

According to VNE