Saudi forces 'arrest militants'

Security forces claim to have killed several militants recently

Security forces in Saudi Arabia have arrested eight suspected militants, interior ministry officials say.

Four of the suspects were reportedly held in eastern Riyadh. The other four are said to have been stopped in a car between Riyadh and the city of Taef.

Officials have not named the men or said whether they were on a list of the kingdom's most wanted fugitives.

Saudi Arabia has come under pressure to crack down on militancy after a series of attacks on foreign targets.

The kingdom recently announced it had killed the local leader of the al-Qaeda militant group.

His predecessors also reportedly died in clashes with security forces.

A Saudi interior ministry spokesman was quoted by newspapers as saying the latest arrests were part of "systematic combing operations" against suspected militants.

Meanwhile, the US government has said Saudi Arabian individuals continue to fund militants across the world.

Treasury Under-secretary Stuart Levey told a Senate committee that efforts to stem the flow of Saudi money to terrorists was "among the most daunting" challenges faced by his agency, the AFP news agency reports.

Saudi Arabia says it is doing everything in its power to crack down on individuals and organisations linked to terrorism.