The confrontation was the third of its kind in the kingdom is less than a month. The Saudi authorities on 21 July arrested 16 militants, suspected of planning attacks on Saudi installations, and another six men, suspected of links to al-Qaeda, were killed in a shootout with security forces later in the month (MEED 25:7:03).

Saudi Press Agency reported that the shooting started in Al-Amana district in north Riyadh after police tried to stop a car. 'They [the police] chased the car which stopped near a rest stop and the driver got out carrying a weapon. Immediately afterwards two cars emerged from behind the rest stop and those inside started firing at random,' said a Saudi Interior Ministry official.