Clashes in Saudi Arabia leave at least 14 wounded

At least fourteen people were wounded when police clashed with Shiite protesters in the eastern Saudi Arabian province of al Qatif, where protests have been held for the past two days, Al Jazeera television reported.

A Saudi Interior Ministry source said that eleven security men were among the injured.

"Nine were shot with bullets and two others (injured) by Molotov (cocktails)," the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) quoted the source as saying.

He added that three Saudi civilians (two women and a man) were also wounded.

The source accused a "foreign country" of "inciting strife" in the eastern province.

Pro-Saudi Shiite agency AhlulBayt News Agency said protests broke out Sunday in the Saudi Shiite town of Awwamiya, also in al-Qatif.

The protests began after authorities arrested two fathers to pressure them into handing over their sons who allegedly participated in demonstrations staged last March.

On March 17, thousands of Shiite protesters demonstrated against the kingdom's backing of the Bahraini crackdown on protesters this year.

Saudi Arabia's minority Shiites complain of discrimination, saying they often struggle to get senior government jobs and benefits available to other citizens. The Saudi government denies the charges.

Some Saudi officials blame Iran, saying it supports the Shiite population in the Sunni-ruled kingdom.

Source: DPA