MANAMA, Feb 26: Two suicide bombers killed in a foiled attack on the world’s biggest oil processing complex were on a list of the Saudi government’s most-wanted extremists, the official Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday.

The Saudi Interior Ministry in a statement reported by the agency, identified the two as Abdullah Abdul-Aziz al-Tweijri and Mohammed Saleh al-Gheith and said both were on a list of the 15 most-wanted terrorists the kingdom issued last June.

Earlier, Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaeda terror network had identified the two bombers as al-Tweijri and al-Gheith.

The deaths of the two meant that only four remain at large of the list of 15 most-wanted militants believed inside Saudi Arabia, issued last June. A total of 10 have died or been killed, including Al-Tweijri and Al-Gheith, and one was previously arrested.

The ministry statement said the attack was carried out using more than two tons of explosives and authorities were continuing their investigations.

Al Qaeda on Saturday vowed more attacks after the foiled attempt the day before showed the group still can strike inside Saudi Arabia despite the arrests of hundreds of suspects.

The Friday strike on the Abqaiq complex, near Saudi Arabia’s eastern Persian Gulf coast, could have been devastating. Nearly two-thirds of the country’s oil flows through the facility for processing before export.

Foiling the attack demonstrated Saudi Arabia’s success in putting tough security around the oil industry, the source of the royal family’s wealth, oil analysts said.

The two suicide bombers in explosives-packed cars traded fire with police at a checkpoint before a gate in the first of three fences around the sprawling, heavily guarded complex. One bomber collided with the closed gate, exploding and blowing a hole in the fence, a senior Saudi security official said.

The second bomber drove through the hole before police opened fire, detonating his car, the official added on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

Witnesses on Friday reported that security forces traded fire with gunmen outside the facility after the explosions and that a hunt for attackers continued for hours. Saudi officials have not reported the capture of any assailants.

At least two attackers and two security guards were killed, the state news agency reported. Eight foreign workers at the facility — all from South Asia — were wounded, a former Aramco employee told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Aramco is the state oil company that owns the facility.

It was the first attack on Saudi Arabia’s vital oil infrastructure. The Saudi branch of Al Qaeda, which claimed the attack, warned in an Internet statement on Saturday that suicide bombers will target more oil facilities.

“There are more like them who are racing toward martyrdom and eager to fight the enemies of God,” the posting said. “You will see things that will make you happy, God willing.”

In a later statement, the group said it carried out the attack based on the instructions of our leader, Osama bin Laden and identified the two slain suicide bombers as Al-Tweijri and Al-Gheith.

It denied that the bombing was foiled and gave its own account of the attack. It claimed that Al Qaeda fighters overcame guards at the gate, killing three and forcing others to flee. The fighters then opened the gate for a car that entered and blew up, it said, without specifying what the blast targeted.

The authenticity of the statements could not be independently confirmed.

Crude oil prices jumped by more than $2 a barrel on world markets after the attack. But Saudi Oil Minister Ali Naimi swiftly issued assurances that the violence did not affect oil operations.

Al Qaeda militants launched a campaign of violence in Saudi Arabia – Osama bin Laden’s birthplace — in 2003. Attacks on oil infrastructure could represent a new tactic.

Saudi security forces have largely had Al Qaeda’s branch in the kingdom on the run over the past year, arresting hundreds of suspects. They killed or captured all but one of the top 26 militants on a most-wanted list issued in December 2003, then issued the second list in June.

Saudi Arabia holds over 260 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, a quarter of the world’s total. It currently puts out about 9.5 million barrels per day, or 11 per cent of global consumption.—AP