By Ramazan Turgut

RIYADH

Saudi Arabia on Thursday released seven of 208 suspects arrested earlier in an ongoing “anti-corruption” probe, the country’s top legal official said.

In a statement, Attorney-General Sheikh Saud al-Mojeb said a total of 208 suspects had been questioned so far.

"Seven of them have been released without charge," al-Mojeb said, going on to estimate that "systematic corruption and embezzlement" had cost the country at least $100 billion in recent decades.

"Based on our investigations over the past three years, we estimate that at least $100 billion has been misused through systematic corruption and embezzlement over several decades," the attorney-general said in the statement.

As for speculation about the suspects’ identities, al-Mojeb said their privacy would be respected “as they continue to be subject to our judicial process”.

Last week, Saudi authorities detained 11 princes, four sitting cabinet members and a dozen former government ministers in what was described as a massive “anti-corruption” sweep.

On Tuesday, the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority said the bank accounts of suspects detained in the probe had been frozen.