RIYADH, Feb 19: Saudi Arabia is not holding any suspects in the killing of an Afghan minister and reports that three of the men had fled to the kingdom are false, senior Saudi officials were quoted as saying on Tuesday.

Saudi Arabia’s interior minister, its secret service chief and the Saudi envoy to Pakistan told local newspapers the kingdom had no information on the murder suspects who reportedly fled with Afghans going to perform the Haj.

Afghan Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Abdul Rahman was slain at Kabul airport on Thursday, raising doubts about the ability of the fledgling Afghan interim government to rule.

Afghanistan’s interim leader Hamid Karzai has said the killing appeared to be motivated by personal vendetta and had no political roots.

“We asked the (Saudi) foreign ministry and it did not confirm their arrival,” Interior Minister Prince Nayef told al-Watan daily, adding that the three men’s names had not appeared on lists of Haj pilgrims.

“If the (Saudi) secret service had arrested them or had any information about them, then they would notify us immediately,” he said. “Unless they entered with different names, that is a different subject.”

Afghanistan’s interim Interior Minister Yunis Qanuni said on Monday Saudi authorities had detained two of the three suspects and would send them back home to help with the murder probe.—Reuters