Local Editor

A suicide bomber blew himself up in a mosque Thursday in Saudi Arabia's southern province of Aseer, killing at least 17 people, according to Saudi media reports.

Saudi state television reported that the attack targeted a gathering of Saudi Special Forces at the mosque in Aseer's provincial capital.

The broadcaster of state TV channel al-Ekhbariya described the incident as a "terrorist" attack, adding that the explosion occurred when worshipers were praying at the mosque.

However, AFP quoted an unnamed Interior Ministry spokesman as saying that the attack had claimed the lives of at least 13 people.

"It's confirmed there's an explosion and there's more than 13 [killed]... in a mosque," the spokesman said.
According to the official, those killed were members of a Special Weapons and Tactics [SWAT] unit.

No group or individual had claimed responsibility for the bomb blast so far.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team