ABU DHABI ø A German national has been shot and killed in Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi Interior Ministry said the German was an employee for Saudi Arabia's national airline and was killed by several assailants on Saturday.

The ministry said the German was shot on a crowded street in Riyad after he drew cash from an ATM bank machine.

Al Qaida has been targeting foreigners and Saudi security officers in the campaign to undermine the kingdom. Last week, four Al Qaida insurgents were killed in a shootout with security forces outside of Riyad, Middle East Newsline reported.

The German, who was not immediately named, was the first Western national killed since the Al Qaida attack on a Saudi petrochemical and refinery complex in Yanbu on May 1. Six Western engineers were killed in the attack.

Saudi security sources said a car blocked the path of the German as he left the bank. One of the passengers shot the German in the head, returned to the car and drove off.

But an Al Qaida-aligned website asserted that several operatives, including a senior member, escaped. The website identified the operative as Bandar Al Dakheel, whom Saudi officials had identified as one of those killed in the May 20 shootout.