A top figure in the al-Qaeda linked terrorist group in Saudi Arabia was gunned down in the capital Wednesday during a shootout that also killed a policeman, a security official said. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Abdullah Mohammed Rashid al-Roshoud, believed to be the chief ideologist for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, died in the clash in the al-Quds neighborhood in eastern Riyadh. Earlier, Saudi officials said two militants and one policeman were killed, but the number of slain militants was revised to one by the Interior Ministry.
The incident occurred during an amnesty offered last week in which King Fahd said fugitive terrorists who surrendered to police within one month would not face the death penalty. An Interior Ministry statement said one policeman was killed in the clash and six other security personnel were injured. Three bystanders, including one Saudi citizen, were also wounded in the attack that occurred at 3:30 p.m. |