RIYADH 

Six militants were killed and five security personnel injured in Saudi Arabia’s eastern Qatif province, Saudi authorities said Wednesday.   

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) quoted an unnamed security official as saying that the targeted militants had been “planning to carry out criminal acts”. 

The official added that security forces had launched a “preemptive operation”, surrounding a home in Qatif in which seven “wanted individuals” were holed up. 

“The wanted men opened fire on our security forces after the latter had called on them to surrender," the same official was quoted as saying by SPA. 

Six militants were killed in the ensuing gunfight (and a seventh was arrested after sustaining an injury), while five security personnel were wounded in the exchange. 

Saudi Arabia’s Shia-majority Qatif province has been shaken in recent years by sporadic popular demonstrations.