SUICIDE BOMBER BLOWS HIMSELF NEAR US CONSULATE, JEDDAH SAUDI ARABIA

A suspected suicide bomber was killed and two other people wounded in a blast outside the US consulate in Saudi Arabia's city of Jeddah early on Monday, Saudi state TV said. Security officers became suspicious of a man near the parking lot of Dr Suleiman Faqeeh Hospital, which is directly across the US diplomatic mission. When they moved in to investigate, his device detonated, killing him and lightly wounding three security men.

The attack happened at around 215am(23:15 GMT) on July 4, the day when Americans celebrate their independence.

In Washington, a spokesman for the US state department said they was aware of an explosion in and was working with Saudi authorities in the city to collect more information. The spokesman added that the US state department "can confirm that all personnel under chief of mission authority are accounted for at this time".

A witness at the location said the area had been closed off by the security forces and that helicopters were flying overhead, but that none of the police on duty would confirm what had taken place.