Two Indians and a Saudi policeman were wounded by gunfire in the east of the kingdom as authorities hunted suspects linked to unrest by minority Shiites, the interior ministry said on Tuesday.
A police traffic patrol “came under heavy fire from a farming area” in the Shiite-populated Qatif district on Monday evening, the ministry’s spokesman said.
The Indians were passers-by, he said.
An Indian embassy official confirmed that two nationals were wounded and are in stable condition.
“We are following it up,” he said.
The ministry spokesman did not identify the perpetrators but warned the public not to provide assistance to people on a list of 23 wanted suspects issued in 2011 after Shiite unrest.
Last month, Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court confirmed a death sentence against extremist Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr, a leader of anti-government protests convicted of sedition and other crimes.
Activists are calling for the sentence not to be carried out, saying Nimr engaged only in peaceful opposition.
In the latest attack, a gunman killed five Shiites in the Qatif area last month during commemorations of Ashura, one of the holiest observances of their faith.
(Agencies)
