*DUBAI/RIYADH: Saudi Arabian security forces said they had shot down arecreational drone in the capital on Saturday after online videos showinggunfire in a neighbourhood where royal palaces are located sparked fears ofpossible political unrest.*
The Riyadh police spokesman, quoted by the official Saudi News Agency(SPA), said a security screening point noticed the flying of a smallunauthorized recreational drone at 7:50 p.m. local time (1650 GMT), leadingsecurity forces to deal with it according to their orders and instructions.
There were no casualties, and King Salman was not at his palace at thetime, a senior Saudi official told Reuters.
“The king was at his farm in Diriya,” the official said, naming anotherarea of the capital.
Amateur footage circulating earlier on social media showed loud gunfirethat lasted for at least 30 seconds, leading to speculation online about apossible coup attempt in the world’s top oil exporter and questions aboutthe whereabouts of the king and crown prince.
One video showed two police cars parked in the middle of a dark street.Reuters was unable to independently verify the videos’ authenticity.
Asked about the footage, the official said the drone had been shot down,and added that the government would introduce regulations for the use ofrecreational drones.
Saudi Arabia has witnessed a series of radical political changes over thepast year under the king’s son, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who hasspearheaded reforms to transform the economy, open the country culturally,and impose a more tolerant form of Islam in the deeply conservative kingdom.
The 32-year-old leader ousted his older cousin as crown prince last summerin a palace coup and then jailed dozens of top businessmen and seniorroyals, including billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal and National Guardhead Prince Miteb bin Abdullah, in an anti-corruption sweep.
Most of the detainees have been released after reaching settlements withthe government.
Space for criticism has also narrowed in recent months following thearrests of prominent clerics and activists in an apparent bid to silencedissent.
Those moves have helped Prince Mohammed consolidate his position in acountry where power had been shared among senior princes for decades andreligious figures exercised significant influence on policy.
But they have also fuelled speculation about a possible backlash againstthe crown prince, who remains popular with Saudi Arabia’s burgeoning youthpopulation.
Prince Mohammed returned earlier this month from a foreign tour thatincluded the United States where he sought investments and support to curbIranian influence in the region.
Riyadh and Tehran are locked in a decades-long struggle for supremacy thatis being waged in several countries, including Yemen.
Iran-aligned Houthi fighters there have occasionally dispatched dronesacross Saudi Arabia’s southern border, but there was no apparent connectionbetween that conflict and Saturday’s incident in Riyadh. – Agencies