RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Saudi Arabia said Wednesday that it has foiled several planned attacks on oil installations with the arrests of 113 suspected al-Qaeda militants in a months-long sweep.
Many of the suspects had come to Saudi Arabia on visas to visit holy sites or by sneaking across its borders but wanted to join and organize attacks with al-Qaeda, the Interior Ministry said.
Saudi Arabia has aggressively pursued militants since a series of attacks inside the country that began in May 2003. The arrests were the first to be announced since August.
Among the detained were 47 Saudis, 51 Yemenis, a Somali, an Eritrean and a Bangladeshi, the announcement said. Separately, authorities arrested 12 people from two al-Qaeda cells originating across the border in Yemen. The Associated Press
