Two killed in Saudi Arabia gunfight

Saudi Arabia police

Two killed in Saudi Arabia gunfight

Two people have been shot dead in Saudi Arabia during a gunfight between police and gunmen at the funeral of a man killed earlier in the week.

The interior ministry announced that the shooting took place in the oil-producing Eastern Province which is home to Saudi Arabia's Shia minority and has seen a number of protests recently.

The ministry said that the gunmen were working for a foreign country, an obvious reference to Iran.

Dubious aims

The interior ministry said in a statement quoted by the Saudi Press Agencythat “these casualties have occurred due to the exchange of gunfire with unknown criminal elements who have infiltrated among citizens and are firing from residential areas.”

Saudi Arabia has blamed Iran for fomenting unrest in its tiny eastern neighbour, Bahrain, a Shia majority country ruled by a Sunni monarchy.

Bahrain is reached by a causeway from Eastern Province. Saudi troops crossed into Bahrain earlier this year to help the government put down protests.

The interior ministry said: “The goal of those who provoke unrest is to achieve dubious aims dictated to them by their foreign masters."

Iran, Saudi Arabia's rival for influence in the Gulf region, has denied involvement in Bahrain's unrest.

The statement said a number of security checkpoints in Eastern Province have come under attack this week.

The interior ministry stated that the funeral, where the latest shooting took place, was for somebody killed in one of those earlier attacks.

Witnesses said that the two killed in Wednesday's shooting were Shia men at a demonstration during a funeral.

The interior ministry lamented that total of four people have been killed this week in Eastern Province.

Reports have shown that Saudi Arabia has not experienced the mass protests seen in other countries in the Middle East.

When the Arab Spring broke out earlier this year, Saudi authorities unveiled a huge package of spending on housing and other benefits as well as an expansion of its security services.

BBC/Kabiawu/Williams