Saudi Arabia said on Saturday it had substantially weakened al-Qaeda by killing its leader in the kingdom after the group beheaded a US hostage, but militants vowed renewed "holy war" in the world's biggest oil exporter.
Islamic extremists and followers of Abdulaziz al-Muqrin, gunned down by Saudi forces on Friday within hours of American hostage Paul Johnson's death, would be pursued without mercy, Saudi foreign policy adviser Adel al-Jubeir said in Washington.
Muqrin, Saudi Arabia's most wanted man, was killed with three other prominent militants. State television showed their four bloodied corpses and said they were behind a recent wave of violence against foreigners in the country.
Jubeir, an adviser to Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, said reports on Friday that Johnson's body had been found were incorrect. Saudi security forces were still searching for the corpse, believed to be in the Riyadh area.
Twelve other militants were arrested in Friday's operation, including one senior militant believed to have been involved in the bombing in 2000 of the US warship Cole off the coast of neighbouring Yemen.
"We believe that with this blow to al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia yesterday, we have substantially weakened their organisation. We will continue to pursue them with vigour until we eliminate them from our midst," Jubeir told a news conference.
"We are resolved to fight terrorism, those who fund it and those who justify it. We will show no mercy."
Al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia confirmed yesterday the killing of Muqrin and the three other militants but a statement on the al-Qalaa Web site voiced defiance.
"The Mujahideen are continuing the jihad (holy struggle) that they have pledged to God and the killing of their brothers will not weaken their resolve but only increase their determination and commitment," it said.