Saudi security forces have killed six men who were planning to carry out “terrorist attacks” in the Al Qatif region this week, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Wednesday.
Security forces launched a “pre-emptive raid” on a house in the Al Jash district, which seven men were using as a base from which they were planning to execute a series of attacks, the SPA said, citing a spokesman for Saudi Arabia’s state security agency.
Five officers were wounded in the operation, which the statement said had foiled a planned attack on infrastructure development in the Eastern Province, which includes Qatif.
Security forces had called on the men inside the house to hand themselves over to police but the perpetrators opened fire instead of surrendering.
An ensuing shootout with security forces killed six of the seven perpetrators. The seventh suspected terrorist, identified as Adel Jaafar Tahifa, was transferred to a hospital where he is being treated for minor injuries.
The SPA said he is in stable condition.
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The shootout wounded five Saudi security forces, all of whom are now in stable condition, the SPA said.
Security forces seized seven machine guns, three grenades and a number of firearms from the house. A number of mobile phones and laptops were also confiscated.
The nature of the thwarted terrorist operation was not immediately clear but the SPA said that development projects in Qatif were among the targets.
Saudi authorities in 2017 seized control of a restive district of Awamiya, a town in the Qatif region. Saudi authorities have blamed "terrorists" and drug traffickers for unrest in Awamiya.
