Saudi guard shot in Yemen border firefight

Riyadh: A Saudi border guard was wounded in a gun battle with three compatriots who were trying to cross the kingdom’s southern frontier illegally into Yemen, authorities said on Saturday.

A border guards statement said the clash took place when a patrol spotted a vehicle attempting to cross in the Sharoora area in southwestern Najran province.

The patrol came under fire when it chased the vehicle, which hit a sand barrier along the frontier, said the statement carried by SPA state news agency.

The three men were eventually forced to surrender, and are now being questioned by authorities, the SPA report said.

Saudi Arabia’s porous border with Yemen is frequently crossed by smugglers as well as Islamists seeking to join AlQaida militants in the impoverished Arabian peninsula nation.