Saudi Arabia foils bomb plot on US Embassy

Saudi Arabia on Tuesday announced it has arrested 93 suspected terrorists, including two who allegedly wanted to bomb the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh.

{mosads}Every detainee had alleged ties to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), according to The Associated Press. The would-be extremists were plotting attacks on the U.S. Embassy, residential compounds and prisons, the news service added.

Authorities said the U.S. Embassy plot involved three people — a Saudi national and two Syrians, the AP added. The scheme was reportedly uncovered on March 13, and two of the alleged conspirators were arrested the following day.

The suspects allegedly planned on driving a suicide car bomb to the embassy and detonating it there, the AP said.

The BBC reported that the plot’s timeline also coincides with a U.S. decision to freeze consular services for the week starting on March 15. American consular services were on hold at the embassy and missions in Jeddah and Dhahran.

The AP said Saudi Arabia additionally boosted security last week for multiple shopping centers and oil refineries in response to security threats. The move followed repeated attempts by ISIS to recruit new members in the Middle Eastern kingdom.

Maj. Gen. Mansour al-Turki, an Interior Ministry spokesman, on Tuesday also revealed authorities had captured a cell of 65 accused terrorists during a March raid. He told the AP that the group hoped to inspire sectarian strife with repeated attacks.

Al-Turki also said one group desired to lure a military official into a trap via social media and then assassinate him. Nine Saudis were arrested for that plan, he added, including one woman.

Another 15 ISIS supporters were nabbed in the al-Qassim region, al-Turki continued. That cell was apprehended around New Year’s after building explosives, conducting two bombing trials and practicing with firearms.

Al-Turki also told the AP that seven suspects with ISIS links had been killed during attempted arrests. He contrasted that with 15 dead civilians and security personnel killed in five separate attacks across the kingdom in recent months.