Saudi Arabia arrests 113 'Al-Qaeda militants'

Saudi forces have detained more than 100 suspected militants thought to be linked to Al-Qaeda, Saudi officials said.

58 Saudi nationals and 55 foreigners were accused of planning to target oil facilities and security forces.

A large group of 101 suspects, described as a network, comprised 47 Saudis and others from Yemen, Somalia, Eritrea and Bangladesh, interior ministry Mansour al-Turki said.

Two other groups totalling 12 people, described as cells', were also arrested, he said.

Weapons, cameras, documents and computers were seized with the suspects.

"The network and the two cells were targeting the oil facilities in the Eastern Province and they had plans that were about to be implemented," Mansour al-Turki said.

All three independent groups were linked to Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which was formed when two regional offshoots of the Islamic militant network merged in January 2009.

The group has vowed to topple the Saudi monarchy and Yemeni government and establish an Islamic caliphate.

Analysts said AQAP has exploited the instability in Yemen to set up bases there.

The arrests can be seen as both a success on the Saudi security forces part for their vigilence but also of a reminder that the threat posed by the group, which has waxed and waned over the past decade, could become more serious.

In February 2006 Al-Qaeda launched a suicide attack on the Abqaiq oil refinery, the largest in the world, in north-eastern Saudi Arabia.

The attack killed three and injured 10, but car bombs caused only a 'minor fire' that was swiftly brought under control.

Targeting oil facilities in the oil rich Gulf states has long been a tactic of the militant group.

The aim is to sabotage the oil supply, thereby destabilising Saudi Arabia and causing economic damage to the West.

Even if an attack causes little damage the news of a terrorist attack can cause sudden spikes in the price of oil.

However the failure to damage Abqaiq and the killing or capturing of most of its operational personnel was a major blow for Al-Qaeda.

Therefore today's arrests can be seen as a further and deeper blow to Al-Qaeda's credibility in launching attacks in Saudi Arabia.