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A suicide bombing on a housing complex in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, has caused heavy casualties. Two people have been confirmed dead but diplomats believe many more were killed in the blast which happened at midnight (2100 GMT) on Saturday. The manager of the compound, which houses mainly Arab foreign workers, said 100 people had been wounded, including many children. Saudi officials say the attack bears the hallmarks of al-Qaeda.
"This is a crime against innocents which is in the style of al-Qaeda, it is an al-Qaeda operation," said a Saudi security source quoted by Reuters news agency. The explosion came a day after the United States shut its diplomatic missions in Saudi Arabia after "credible evidence" of a threat and the UK embassy in Bahrain issued a similar warning. The US warned its embassy staff in the Saudi capital to stay at home on Sunday pending "further assessment of the security situation."
The BBC's Middle East correspondent Paul Wood says if the attack was carried out by al-Qaeda the question is whether it was a failed effort to kill westerners or simply an attempt to cause instability in the kingdom. Screams Fires burned throughout the night after the blast at the Muhaya compound, which contains about 200 houses and is home to mainly foreigners from the Arab world, including Lebanese, Egyptians and Syrians. Eyewitnesses said the attackers tried to get through an outer wall to drive a car bomb as close as possible before detonating it. Government officials said gunmen tried to enter the complex and there was an exchange of fire with security guards.
Diplomats reported one big explosion, followed by two smaller ones but it was unclear whether there were one or more bombs. Footage on Arabic television showed piles of twisted debris from collapsed buildings, and a large crater left by the explosion. By morning, more of the devastation could be seen, with furniture and belongings strewn out of wrecked homes. "We heard a very strong explosion and we saw the fire," Bassem al-Hourani, a compound resident, told Arabic television al-Arabiya. "I heard screams of the children and women...I saw a lot of people injured and I believe there are a lot of people dead," he said. Many of the injured are children who were at home while their parents were out, following the breaking of the Ramadan fast for the day. There are no confirmed foreign fatalities but one American is wounded and another missing, according to a US official. The UK Foreign Office said three British nationals were in the Muhaya compound but all are accounted for and uninjured. The Muhaya compound is near several private residences belonging to the Saudi royal family, according to a Western diplomat quoted by Reuters news agency. It is also believed to have previously housed western employees of the Boeing aircraft corporation.
The Saudi ambassador in London, Prince Turki al-Faisal, condemned the blast as "a terrible event carried out by evil people whose sole aim is the destruction of the kingdom." 'Al-Qaeda cells'
Thirty-five people were killed in a string of suicide attacks in May on western compounds in Riyadh.
US officials point out that the May bombings were preceded by the arrests of suspected terrorist cells in Saudi Arabia. Saudi police in Mecca recently uncovered a suspected al-Qaeda cell believed to be planning attacks.
BBC Washington correspondent Michael Buchanan says this raises the question of whether the police success actually led to the latest attack being brought forward before it was compromised. The US embassy in Riyadh said on Friday it had "credible information that terrorists in Saudi Arabia have moved from the planning to operation phase of planned attacks in the kingdom." The embassy urged all Americans in Saudi Arabia "to be especially vigilant in when in any area that is perceived to be American or Western." Britain, Canada and Australia last month issued similar alerts, which angered Saudi officials who say they have made important strides in fighting terror inside the country.
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I heard screams of the children and women 
