DUBAI — A cell of Saudi and Emirati members plotting “terror” attacks in the two countries and other states was busted, UAE authorities said on Wednesday.



The suspects “imported material and equipment with the aim of committing terror acts,” said an official statement on WAM state news agency.



The arrests came after coordination between security authorities in the two Gulf states. The suspects were described as members of the “deviant group” linked to Al-Qaeda.



“Security authorities acted “after confirming that those elements were plotting to jeopardize security” in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and “other brother countries,” the statement said, adding that they would be put on trial.



Unlike Saudi Arabia, the UAE has never seen attacks by Al-Qaeda, but authorities have in past months arrested dozens accused of links to Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood.



In July, Abu Dhabi said it dismantled a group plotting against state security without identifying their affiliation or the number of arrests.

The prosecutor general, Salem Said Kabish, said an unspecified number of people were being questioned for having formed “a group aimed at damaging the security of the state.”



WAM said at the time they were also suspected of “rejecting the constitution and the founding principles of power in the Emirates” and of having links with foreign organizations. — AFP