Four killed and 18 wounded in attack on Shiite mosque in Saudi Arabia

After one suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance to the Al Rida mosque in the eastern Al Ahsa region, a second attacker began firing on worshippers. But they eventually disarmed him, tied him up and held him until police arrived.

RIYADH // A suicide bomber attacked a Shiite mosque in eastern Saudi Arabia during Friday prayers, killing four people before worshippers disarmed and tied up his accomplice who had fired on them.

The state Al Ekhbariya news channel confirmed the deaths and reported 18 injured in the raid on Al Rida mosque in Mahasen in the eastern Al Ahsa region.

“We started to pray, and then we were surprised to hear shooting,” said Mohammad Al Ahmadi, 25, who was slightly injured in the attack.

“We rushed and closed the doors. After that they shot at the door trying to break in. The suicide bomber blew himself up and the door flew open.”

The mosque filled with smoke as a second attacker “randomly” shot at worshippers, Mr Al Ahmadi said.

“Eventually the worshippers attacked him and took away his gun and took off his suicide belt. We tied him up ... and held him till police came,” he said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the attack, reiterated the UAE’s solidarity with Saudi Arabia and extended condolences and sympathies to the Saudi government and the families of the victims.

Friday’s incident was the latest assault on members of the kingdom’s Shiite minority, after a string of shootings and bombings claimed by ISIL.

The interior ministry said two suicide bombers were prevented from entering the mosque by security personnel.

“One responded by blowing himself up at the mosque entrance while an exchange of fire took place with another,” it said. The ministry said a second suspect was injured and arrested with help from citizens. “A suicide belt was found in his possession,” it said.

Friday’s attack happened in an area largely populated by employees of the state-owned Saudi Aramco oil company.

Most of Saudi Arabia’s Shiites live in the Eastern Province, which includes Al Ahsa, a region where much of the kingdom’s oil reserves are located.

ISIL has claimed several deadly attacks against Saudi Shiites since late 2014. Friday’s was the first since October, when a gunman fired on faithful commemorating Ashura in the Qatif area, killing five.

In June, four Shiites died preventing a suicide bomber from entering Al Anoud mosque in Dammam city, while days earlier, 21 people died in another mosque bombing in Eastern Province. During Ashura in 2014, gunmen killed seven Shiite worshippers in the eastern town of Al Dalwa.

* Agence France-Presse with additional reporting by Wam