Saudi security foil attack on Shia mosque in Qatif

Saudi forces thwarted a planned suicide attack on a mosque in Saudi's eastern province, where the kingdom's majority Shia population live, Saudi media reported on Wednesday.

Security forces killed a man wearing an explosive belt before he detonated it near al-Rasoul al-A'dham Shia mosque in al-Qatif, al-Arabyia news reported.

Police arrested another man after he was wounded by an exchange of fire with security officers, Saudi newspaper Asharq al-Awsat said.

"The relevant security apparatus was on the scene immediately to swipe the entire area to ensure no other bombs were in place and that determine whether it was safe for citizens and residents to come back," al-Arabiya said, adding that both men were not Saudi nationals but lived in the kingdom.

The foiled attack comes following a series of bombings claimed by Islamic State [IS] militant group hit the kingdom earlier this year.

In July, a blast struck the Prophet's Mosque in Medina, one of Islam's holiest sites, killing four security officers.

Also in July two suicide bombers detonated their explosive belts outside a Shia mosque in al-Qatif after they were refused entry.

Shias in Saudi Arabia make up some 10 to 15 percent of the ultra-conservative, Sunni-ruled kingdom's population.

The minority group, many of whom live in the country's oil-producing east, were previously targeted in attacks by IS, which views Shias as heretics.