4 killed at checkpoint in Saudi Arabia's al-Qassim

A terror attack on the Boureida-Tarfiya road in Saudi Arabia's al-Qassim province has left four dead -- two attackers, a policeman and a foreign national civilian -- an interior ministry spokesman confirmed Sunday (July 8th).

One of the perpetrators of the attack, on a security checkpoint on the Boureida-Tarfiya road, was wounded and was taken to hospital for treatment.

The perpetrators were riding in a new-model Hyundai sports utility vehicle when the security forces engaged them, the spokesman said.

A policeman who was manning the checkpoint, named as Suleiman Abdul Aziz al-Abdulatif, was killed, as was a civilian from Bangladesh, he added.

The patrol that was attacked is one of several deployed in the area to maintain security, Maj. Majid al-Nukhaifi of the Saudi police told Al-Mashareq.

"Most are qualified to quickly respond to any potential terrorist threat in direct co-ordination with the area's operations room," he said.

Security reinforcements arrived at the scene minutes after the exchange of fire, he added.

Security forces engaged the vehicle as soon as they became suspicious of it, he said, adding that the passengers opened fire when they were stopped.

The policeman was killed instantly, al-Nukhaifi said.

One of the attackers was wounded and taken to hospital for treatment, al-Nukhaifi said, noting that "an interrogation could yield important information about the perpetrators of the attack and their backers".

"One theory is that the group was trying to approach al-Tarafiya prison, as there is nothing noteworthy in the area other than the prison, where many inmates are serving time on terrorism convictions," he said.

The area is known for tight security and constant presence of fixed and mobile security points, he added.