Islamic State claims responsibility for Jeddah attack

The explosion was the second security incident to take place in Jeddah in the last couple of weeks

CAIRO:

Islamic State claimed responsibility on Thursday for an attack on a non-Muslim cemetery in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah which wounded several people, without providing any evidence.

In a statement issued through its official channel on Telegram, the group said that its “soldiers” had managed to hide a homemade bomb in the cemetery on Wednesday which then exploded after several “consuls of crusading countries” gathered there.

The explosion, which occurred during a World War One remembrance ceremony, was the second security incident to take place in Jeddah in the last couple of weeks, and the first attack with explosives in years to attempt to hit foreigners in the conservative kingdom.

A source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters the attack happened early on Wednesday when several diplomatic delegations from the European Union and other countries were present at a Remembrance Day event organised by the French embassy.