Saudi arrests over suicide attacks

Saudi and US authorities are co-operating on combating terrorism

The Saudi authorities say they have detained four suspected members of the al-Qaeda network following Monday night's suicide bombings in the capital Riyadh.

The announcement by the Interior Minister, Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz, comes as Saudi and US investigators continue inquiries into the attacks, which killed at least 34 people - including nine suspected bombers.

Prince Nayef told a news conference that the four men in custody were among a group of 19 suspected al-Qaeda members identified by the authorities earlier this month.

He revealed that they may have known about the attacks but were not directly involved.

They came according to a request by the US authorities to inspect the location because there were deaths and injuries on the American side

Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz, on the arrival of FBI agents

Three of the dead bombers were also among the group of 19 who escaped from their hide-out after a gun battle with security forces in early May, in which police seized a significant quantity of weapons.

Following the bombings, the US State Department has warned of a possible imminent terrorist attack in the western Saudi port of Jeddah.

US and British experts

About 200 people were injured in the Riyadh attacks, which targeted residential compounds housing mostly foreign workers.

The interior minister also confirmed that 60 agents from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had arrived in Riyadh to examine the blast sites.

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"They came according to a request by the US authorities to inspect the location because there were deaths and injuries on the American side."

A group of British police are also reported to have travelled to Riyadh to view the bomb site, but like the Americans they will only inspect the sites, not take part in the investigation itself.

Saudi Arabia, which has been strongly criticised by Washington since the blasts, has pledged to do "whatever it takes" to uphold security.

Co-operation

Prince Nayef said the Saudi security forces are working closely with the US: "There is co-operation and it will continue in order to fight terrorism."

In the triple suicide attacks the bombers drove cars packed with explosives through the gates of three foreign housing compounds then detonated them with devastating effect.

Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, who has repeatedly demanded that US forces leave the kingdom which has two of Islam's holiest shrines.

Also, 15 of the 19 men suspected of carrying out the 11 September suicide attacks on New York and Washington were Saudis.

The attacks come two weeks after the US announced it was withdrawing most of its troops from Saudi Arabia, where they were deployed during the 1991 Gulf War.