Saudi Arabia arrests 431 IS members, foils attacks

RIYADH, July 18: Saudi Arabia has arrested 431 Islamic State (IS) members and foiled terrorist attacks on mosques during Ramadan, it was announced on Saturday.

The arrested, most of them Saudis, were members of the largest IS cell busted in the country, Xinhua said citing a report in Al Arabiya.

Besides Saudis, those arrested include Yemenis, Egyptians, Jordanians, Algerians, Nigerians and Chadians, the report said.

The report quoted an interior ministry statement as saying that the foiled terrorist attempts included a suicide attack targeting a mosque of the Special Emergency Forces in Riyadh on June 26.

The ministry added that security and government facilities and a diplomatic mission were also on the hit list.

It said it has also arrested 144 people for promoting extremist and terrorist ideology in the social media. (IANS)