RIYADH, Dec 27: Five Saudi policemen were killed on Tuesday during a shooting spree by a gunman whom security sources said was a wanted militant and who was later arrested. An interior ministry statement said a man was arrested after shooting three policemen at a checkpoint in the ultra-conservative northern Qassim province, site of several shootouts with Al Qaeda-linked militants.

Earlier, the same gunman had killed two policemen on patrol near the northern town of Buraida.

Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television named the man as Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Suweilmi and said he was on a list of 36 wanted militants linked to Al Qaeda.

It said Suweilmi was an Internet specialist who had helped the Saudi wing of al Qaeda post statements on the Web.

The Interior Ministry statement said he had been wounded during his arrest. It said more details would be provided later.—Reuters