Six suspects wanted over unrest in Saudi Arabia’s Shiite minority stronghold of Qatif were killed in a police raid this week, the kingdom’s secret service said Wednesday.
One person was lightly wounded and arrested in the “preemptive” raid on “terrorists” holed up in a house in the eastern town of Jish on Monday, a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency said.
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.
Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province has seen bouts of unrest since 2011 when protesters emboldened by the Arab Spring took to the streets demanding an end to what they say is discrimination by the Sunni-dominated government.
The Shiite community is estimated to make up between 10 and 15 percent of the kingdom’s population of 32 million, but the government has released no official statistics.
The government denies discrimination against Shiites.
Follow us on
