Malaysian authorities announced on Tuesday they had foiled a plot against Saudi Arabia’s monarch on a tour of Asia last week and had arrested seven men, including four Yemeni nationals.

Khalid Abu Bakar, Malaysia’s police chief, said the men arrested in February who were suspected of links to militant groups including Isis, had plotted to attack King Salman bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud while he was visiting Kuala Lumpur last week.

“They were planning to attack Arab royalties during their visit to Kuala Lumpur. We got them in the nick of time,” Mr Khalid told reporters.

Saudi Arabia is leading a military coalition against Yemen’s Houthi rebellion aimed at restoring the government in exile.

Malaysian police said in an earlier statement that two of the detained men, a Malaysian and an Indonesian, were plotting a large-scale car or truck bomb attack before travelling to join Isis in Syria. 
King Salman’s four-day visit to Malaysia was the start of a month-long Asian tour aimed at deepening political and business ties in key export markets for Saudi oil.

On the second day of the king’s visit, Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company announced plans to invest $7bn in a Malaysian refining project.

The deal is one of Saudi Aramco’s biggest investments in refining and petrochemicals, and fits with a strategy of expanding refining capabilities in key markets to secure demand for its crude oil exports.

The Saudi monarch left Malaysia for Indonesia last week, and is expected to go on to China, Japan and the Maldives.

The king arrived in Kuala Lumpur with a 600-strong delegation, according to Malaysia’s state news agency.

Source: The Financial Times, 7 March 2017