Saudi Arabia says wanted man blows himself up during arrest, injuring four

A man wanted by security officials in Saudi Arabia killed himself in the city of Jeddah with an explosive belt to avoid arrest, wounding four others in the blast, the kingdom said Friday.

The state-run Saudi Press Agency, citing the Saudi State Security Presidency, identified the dead man as Abdullah bin Zayed al-Shehri.

The report said that as security forces moved in on him Wednesday in the the Al Samer neighbourhood of Jeddah, al-Shehri detonated the bomb belt. The report identified the wounded as a Pakistani national and three security officials.

Al-Shehri, had been sought by authorities for seven years, according to Saudi TV. It was not immediately clear on what charges he was wanted. 

The report did not say if he belonged to any known extremist group. The kingdom has previously battled al-Qaeda and Islamic State militants.